Tradition Is Important And We Do It... 12/3/2016
This year our little group grew from ten to sixteen with the addition of Amy, Joe, Charlie, and Alex and dear friends Brian and Jan! We are so happy to have them join this tradition! We have been doing it for 28 years only missing once because of Sue's back surgery and even then, we sent the family on alone.
This year we had the Adams, Duda's, Finch's, Liles', Greg and David and of course Irene. Bob Duda had a gig out of town so David, Greg's Dad, is taking his place!
Great fun at Seasons 52 in Costa Mesa (Click for full sized image 3200x2400 px)
First Stop? Why Of Course... Season's 52!
It was a beautiful day in the city... We selected out "home away from home"
to enjoy lunch before "A Christmas Carol"
The breeze was perfect... No smog in our sky!
The party can start... The Boss is here!
Our private room was ready to go... The wait staff was outstanding!
Irene always makes the occasion special!
The British invasion... Circa 2016
All dressed up in his Christmas finest.... Blue??
...and he forgot his Santa Hat!
Amy has the boys busy already!
"So Paul... How tall is your tree this year?"
"No... Maybe it's this big!"
"Paul Silly boy... You didn't do a tree this year!"
Robin and Nick join the gathering
Bob was doing a gig in Texas with Mr. Sinatra!
David and Greg arrive...
Joe is awaiting his crayolas and coloring book!
A most wonderful time of the year!
Brian and Jan share their secret thoughts... Oh oh!
Jan shares first!
Brian had a great idea!
Greg and Michele do the greetings ...
Theo is awaiting some Shakespeare!
Awe....
We made two boards of flat bread disappear in 1.4 seconds
with the assistance of Joe
Stories are told and retold...
Saved by the camera!
Joe explains the new camera...
It is Japanese
You press the button and it goes "Crick"
"I am concentrating on coloring with in the lines!"
"Who? Me?"
The Thinker!
We are about to arrive at a decision
Mom makes a recommendation!
"Hey! I want to color!"
Who is having a good time??
Enjoying family.... So wonderful this time of the year... or ANYTIME of the year!
Orders are being taken
"Now you know what I have to put up with.... Kinda like Sue"
"Irene listens carefully to all the banter back and forth!"
Did You Know? - Christougena, which in Greek means Christmas, is celebrated on the 25th December and is a time when families come together to celebrate. Greece has it's own version of Santa Claus, they call him Saint Vasilis, who comes to their home on Christmas eve to deliver a few small gifts to the children.
What do they eat in Greece on Christmas Day you ask? The pastries are either eaten for breakfast or as starters. Another popular Christmas dessert are melomakarono, egg or oblong shaped biscuit/cakes made from flour, olive oil, and honey and rolled in chopped walnuts. A traditional table decoration are loaves of 'Christopsomo' (Christ's Bread or Christmas bread).
All the boys are busy...
We are sooooo lucky to have all our family get along so well!
"Hey Mom... P-s-s-s-s-s-t"
A Christmas selfie is about to be created!
We are graced with having Amy as part of our family!
The vote is still out on this one.... TEASING!
"Then... Amy thinks about having Paul as part of her family!"
When Theo and Nick get together, they are in a world of their own!
Speaking of beautiful daughters....
Oh oh!... The manager is here.... Have we made too much noise?
"It was those people over there... Really"
The General Manager, Matthew, dropped in to make sure we were doing well...
Seaons's 52 is a First Class restaurant and great dining experience!
The boys smell food... Better watch out!
The meal arrives.... Time to chow down!
David gets right into the meal!
Dessert got the boys attention!
Our waiter carefully explains all the offerings
A tower of calories albeit in small packages
Dessert magically disappeared!
"What... No figgy pudding?"
Did You Know? - Figgy pudding is made with figs (other references state that it was made with plums not figs[1]) and was popular as a Christmas pudding in the British Isles. The pudding may be baked, steamed in the oven, boiled or fried.
Figgy pudding dates back to 16th century England. Its possible ancestors include savory puddings, such as crustades, fygeye or figge (a potage of mashed figs thickened with bread), creme boiled (a kind of stirred custard), and sippets (croutons).
In any case, its methods and ingredients appear in diverse older recipes. Today, the term figgy pudding is popularized mainly by the Christmas carol "We Wish You A Merry Christmas," which includes the line, "Now bring us some figgy pudding".
A variety of nineteenth-century sources state that, in the West Country of England (from which the carol comes), "figgy pudding" referred to a raisin or plum pudding, not necessarily one containing figs.
Theo plays "Peek-a-boo"
Theo gots the giggles
Daughter Michele having a great time!
"Does Alex have his violin?.... Just incase they need an opening act?"
Across the street we go...
A Short Distance To South Coast Repertory!
Nineteenth-century London came to life! We captured the spirit of an old-fashioned Christmas with this timeless Dickens classic and all time favorite characters—Tiny Tim and the Cratchit family, the Fezziwigs, the Ghosts of Christmas past, present and yet-to-come—and, as always, Hal Landon Jr. as everyone's favorite curmudgeon, Ebenezer Scrooge ("The quintessential Ebenezer Scrooge!"
Did You Know? - A Christmas Carol in Prose, Being a Ghost-Story of Christmas, commonly known as A Christmas Carol, is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall on 19 December 1843.
The novella met with instant success and critical acclaim. A Christmas Carol tells the story of a bitter old miser named Ebenezer Scrooge and his transformation into a gentler, kindlier man after visitations by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come.
The book was written at a time when the British were examining and exploring Christmas traditions from the past as well as new customs such as Christmas cards and Christmas trees. Carol singing took a new lease of life during this time
Dickens' sources for the tale appear to be many and varied, but are, principally, the humiliating experiences of his childhood, his sympathy for the poor, and various Christmas stories and fairy tales.
