Christmas Letter & Recipe 2009

Merry Christmas to all of you,

I’m trying something different this year. I decided that I am going to save a little bit of paper by posting my letter on my blog. This way, if you haven’t checked out my blog, you can look back over the past year and see what I have posted.

This has been busy year full of joy, fun and sadness. I guess that sort of sums up life. I lost my mother in February. She was 93 years old and lived a long and full life, but I still miss her. I especially appreciated her when I opened my box of 35 crocheted angel to decorate the garlands in my living room. That was her signature craft and I will alway treasure them. In July, we lost Steve Smylie’s mother. She lived in the same assisted living home as my mother. I’m attaching a picture of us from last Christmas. It’s fun to see the two grandma’s looking so good. That’s how we should remember them.

And here is a picture of me with my mother last Christmas Day. This is another treasure. Don't you think we look alike. But, I'm sure I don't have that white hair. I don't even want to think that.

This Christmas will be the first time we are not heading to Southern California for Christmas. That means I’ve been in Southern California on Christmas for 60 years. Now I really am beginning to feel old. But, we are looking forward to going to Portland to be with our two adorable grandchildren and their very nice parents. Chris and Jess bought their first house this year so we will be joining them at their house for Christmas. I'm excited to be with Maryn and Lucy on Christmas morning.

Chris continues to enjoy his work in insurance. He works less than 5 miles from their house so his commute is easy. Jess is an amazing and creative stay at home mom. Maryn and Lucy’s lives are full of baking, reading, crafts and dancing. I really enjoy skyping with them. I spent 1 ½ hours on Saturday watching them decorate their gingerbread houses. I also read them a few Curious George stories too. I love it when Lucy says “Where is grandpa?” Then she yells for him and screams in delight when he comes. Maryn started pre-school this year and is a wonderful big sister. Lucy is running, talking and full of personality. They both love to dance. They are a delight and so are their parents.

Laurel is a busy 26 year old. When she isn’t working, she is out jogging, swimming, hiking or going to some yoga or pilates class. She is working in Berkeley at a software company. The nice thing about her job is that it is flexible. That flexibility is important because as I write this letter she is on a 5 week trip to New Zealand and Australia. She traveled with a friend for 3 weeks and is now in Australia on her own. But, her adventures don’t end there. Laurel rowed the Grand Canyon with our rafting friends this summer. She did an 18 day trip on the river and she rowed most of it. I guess she is following in the footsteps of her father. It’s fun to see her so active and having so much fun. She managed to flip her raft only once and lived to tell about it.




Since our kids are young and active now, that means that Don and I can slow down a bit. Don is now working about half time. This gives him time to relax a bit more, He loves having his boat and is out in the Bay often. He brought home his first catch of crab this year. That was fun. He also does a couple of long range trips to Mexico. We both like walking at the Marina most days when the weather permits. Here is a picture of the guys after fishing for Halibut. The Ballanti Boys come here most years for what we call Butfest. It is really fun to see the guys bond and compete while they fish.

I am still doing weekly bible study, cooking at church (the picture on the right is our cooking group), playing bridge, and various volunteer and social activities. Keeping in touch with family (especially grandchildren) and friends is always on the top of my list and then there is quilting, and yard work too. The list goes on and on. I enjoy using facebook to keep in touch with people. I had a flash of creativity this year and created a beautiful mosaic that will go on the wall in our backyard. That is my creation on the left. I'm going to try to make another one next year with a San Francisco Bay Bridge theme.

VACATIONS: I always tell people that I love to be home, but it really does seem like we are gone a lot. Our main vacation this year was a trip to Alaska with Don’s brother, Bob, and his wife Gail. Bob planned the trip and he did a great job of it. We took the train to Denali and saw lots of wildlife in the park. We then spent 5 days at a house in Seward. The guys fished a bit and we went to the Kenai Fjords and saw a glaciers and more wildlife. This was my 3rd trip to Alaska and I just love that place. It was wonderful spending quality time with Bob and Gail.

We also went to Tahoe with our long time Tahoe friends. We have been doing some form of this vacation every year for about 28 years. My sisters Mary and Sue stopped in Tahoe to visit us while we were there. Here is a picture of our fun Tahoe Group. There were also trips to our cabin, Yosemite, LA, and Portland . Never a dull moment. I love going places and I love coming home.

God has blessed our family in so many ways. I am thankful to Him for all that we have. I am hoping that our Christmas is a witness to all that we are celebrating the birth of our Savior Jesus.

On Christmas morning we plan to make the Cherry Walnut Coffee Cake that Nancy always made on Christmas morning. Here is that recipe right out of her recipe box. It's really good. Maybe you want to join us by making it too. Because it is hard to read this copy, I have retyped the recipe for you below.

Merry Christmas from Carol and Don Ballanti

Rich Cherry Walnut Coffeecake
(Makes 2 Cakes)

5 to 5 ½ C flour
¼ C sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp grated lemon peel
2 pkg. Active Dry Yeast
1 C Milk
½ C water
1 C Butter
2 eggs (room temp)
2 C Chopped Walnuts
2/3 C chopped maraschino Cherries
3 TBS. sugar
Oil
Powdered Frosting (powdered sugar and milk )

In a large bowl thoroughly mix 2 cups flour, ¼ cup sugar, salt, lemon peel, and yeast.

Combine milk, water, and butter in a bowl and microwave just to slightly melt butter. Gradually add to dry ingredients and beat 2 minutes at medium speed with electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Add eggs and ½ cup flour. Beat at high speed for 2 minutes, scraping bowl. Stir in enough additional flour to make a stiff dough. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then a towel. Set aside 20 minutes.

Combine walnuts, cherries and 3 TBS of sugar.

Turn dough out onto heavily floured board. Divide dough in half. Roll each half into a 14 X 10 inch rectangle. Spread with cherry filling. Roll up from long side as for jelly roll to form a roll 14 inches long. Pinch seam to seal. Place on a greased baking sheet. Cut diagonal slits about 1 inch apart in rolls, starting from top surface of roll and cutting about 2/3 of the way through. Pull cut pieces out alternately right and left. (See picture). Cover loosely with wax paper brushed with Oil, then top with plastic wrap. Refrigerate 2 to 24 hours.

When ready to bake, remove from refrigerator. Uncover dough carefully. Let stand at room temperature 10 minutes.

Bake at 375 for 25 to 30 minutes or until done. Remove from baking sheets and cool on wire racks. Frost with powdered sugar frosting.

Matilda's 98th Birthday

"When I grow up I want to be an old woman." Have you seen that commercial? Matilda could have been in it. I would rather say " When I grow up I want to be just like Matilda." Today a small group of us celebrated her 98th birthday. What a wonderful party for a wonderful person. Matilda is an inspiration to so many. She is cheerful, insightful and encouraging. It was my pleasure to be included in her group of friends. Matilda reminds me so much of my own mother. They are from the same generation and we have a lot to learn from that generation.

Here is Lee serving vegetarian lasagna to Matilda. The lasagna was delicious. All the food was wonderful including the homemade baklava that her neighbor Scarlett made.

Happy 98th Birthday.

4 Years - I Miss You Nancy

Today marks 4 years since Nancy went to be with the Lord. I continue to miss her, but I also remember the good times. The picture below was taken at Bass Lake in 1968. That is Steve Ballanti (on the left) and Don (on the right) and of course the ever so petite and balanced Nancy on top. I remember this wonderful time with her and also our many other visits to Bass Lake. Nancy's memory lives on. I bet she is doing cartwheels in heaven.

The kitty and the princess

I had to post these pictures for those of you that aren't on facebook. Jess took the pictures. Maybe it's because I'm the grandmother, but I just think these girls are adorable. Don't you?

Laurel and Carol hike at Point Pinole

Friday was such a beautiful day, so Laurel and I decided to go to Point Pinole for a hike. I hadn't been there for years. We used to take Chris & Laurel there when they were on their little kid bikes. Now Laurel lives just 5 to 10 minutes from this beautiful park on the bay. That is Mt. Tam in the background.

Our Visit with David and Lakshmi

David and Lakshmi are long time friends that used to live in El Cerrito but have called Utah their home for over 20 years. They came to town and we were able to have some great times with them. In the picture below, Helen and Ben came over for dinner and we have some wonderful time catching up. Helen, Lakshmi and I are the original three walking partners. We had a wonderful dinner of white sea bass piccata.The pictures below were from today when Laurel and I joined David and Lakshmi in the city for a walk. We started in Pacific Heights and walked over to the Golden Gate Bridge. It is fleet week and we briefly saw the blue angels, but the show was canceled due to low clouds. We were disappointed, but had a great time anyway. I love taking pictures of people taking pictures. Here is Lakshmi being the photographer.

Here is Laurel taking my picture.

Oh, this is the picture that Laurel took. Nice job!

Isn't it just a beautiful day. What a shame that the blue angels can't fly if clouds are too low. We did get to see other planes and about 5 minutes of the blue angles. We had a great time and Laurel and I took BART home. I'm glad that I'm at home posting this. David and Lakshmi are still out with their son Gabe and Laurel is at a party. I really do have a fun quota at my age.

Maryn's 4th Birthday Week

I went up to Portland to celebrate Maryn's 4th Birthday and visit with everyone. We stayed so very busy. We seemed to have something going every day. Jess, the girls and I went over to the coast for an overnight. We stayed with my sister Mary but also got to see my brother Steve's new house, nephew Craig's new house, plus a visit to great neice Tab's house. The overnight flew by.


Maryn has started pre-school, so I got to visit her school and meet her teachers. I also went to Community Bible Study with Jess. They are studying Genesis which is the same study that I'm doing, so it was interesting. Then there was the party at Grandma Kathy's house and the party at Chucky Cheese (one of Wednesday and the other on Friday). That certainly keep Maryn busy and excited. I enjoyed spenting some one on one time with each of the girls. Maryn is clearly the older sister and Lucy is the clown of the family. They really love each other and play great together.

I took so many pictures, but I'm trying to keep them to a controlled amount. If you still have energy at the end, I included a couple of videos.



Here is Maryn at her Chucky Cheese party. Notice the crown Jess made for her.

Maryn with her best birthday smile.

Playing at Chucky Cheese

Maryn with Grandpa Doug on her actual birthday.

Lucy.... We took a walk to a local park on afternoon.

Maryn...... at the park

Lucy and I went out even though it was raining a bit. When in Portland, do as the Portland people do. Besides, Lucy loves to find puddles.

Here is Tab in her house holding Isreal. Her baby girl is due this month.

Maryn at the park near Tab's house.

Lucy at the park near Tab's house. This is a great park in Lincoln City.

Aren't sleeping babies precious? Lucy couldn't stay awake any more. She feel asleep on my nephew craigs couch.

Maryn and Lucy playing in their back yard.

Lucy pushing her car

Maryn riding her brand new bike

Lucy with her great uncle Jim

Maryn and Lucy walk the white line by Steve's house.

Jess, Lucy and I took a hike with Steve at Salishan

Steve Barb Mary and Lucy are checking out pictures on the computer.Here we are Mary (#1) Carol (#5) Steve (#8). Aren't we cute?

Maryn and Lucy play while Isreal and Great Grandma Mary look on.

Lucy's favorite toy. Her Puppy.

Ok. For those of you that just like to see cute kids, here are a couple of movies that I took.

Our Trip to Alaska 2009

Don and I had a wonderful Alaskan vacation with Bob and Gail. It was great spending time with them. We flew to Anchorage and took the train to Denali. We did an all day bus tour of Denali National Park where we saw lots of wild life. Gail did the animal count. I'm not sure if I have it right, but it was something like 26 Caribou, 9 Moose, 6 bears, 1 fox and a few dahl sheet that mostly looked like a spot on the mountain. We did manage to see the top of Denali briefly. It was a treat to see it. As it turned out, we saw it again from Anchorage just as we were getting ready to fly home. My favorite animals were a mother grizzly and her two cubs. They were adorable.

After touring Denali Park we went back to Anchorage, got a rental car and went to Seward where we stayed in cute two bedroom cabin at Lowell Point on Resurrection Bay. It was nice to be right by the water. We did a cruise of the Kenai Fjords, visited Exit Glacier, went to the Marine Wildlife Center, did a drive over to Soldotna and Ninilchik on Cook Inlet where we saw Mt. Redoubt Volcano that erupted in March and closed the Anchorage Airport. We enjoyed hanging out together in Seward. The guys went fishing on our last day while Gail and I shopped and discovered some delightful places in Seward.

I haven't figured out how I can just post a few pictures since I took close to 700 pictures. But, I am going to try and just give you a taste of our trip.

DENALI
Here we are getting ready to board the train to Denali. The train trip was good, but not as scenic as the train trip from Vancouver to Banff that we did last year. But, the animals that we saw in Denali

Here Denali just peeks though the clouds. I think that only about 10% of the people that go to Denali actually see the mountain, so I was thrilled to get a peek of it.

In Denali park we had the opportunity to become our favorite animal. Yes, we are Moose.

Here is the Denali Cabin that we stayed in. Yes, we are pre-drinking. It stays light in Alaska so late that we often didn't have dinner until 8PM.

This is probably my favorite photo taken in the park. Can you believe that this is a wild grizzly bear and her two cubs? Grizzly's are easy to spot because of that bump on their back. They were playing right by the road.

Here is Mr. Fox. I was excited to see him hiding behind bushes.

This is Mrs. Moose (or Mr.) crossing the creek bed.

We saw herds of Caribou in the Park. I think we saw 26 Caribou in all.

Our trip in Denali took us all the way to Kantishna. We had lunch here and could either watch how sled dogs were trained or pan for gold. The sled dogs were really fun to watch. I've never seen such motivated dogs. The dog trainers 7 year old daughter was helping hold the dogs. When the dogs were allowed to take off, they did so with gusto.

SEWARD

This is a wonderful waterfall that Gail and I discovered right in town. It was right next to Two Lakes hiking trail. I just loved this spot. We hiked around the two lakes while the boys fished.Here is the harbor in Seward. This is where everything happens in town. At least our fisherman husbands seem to think this was the happening place.

Here is the big catch aka dead fish. Bob and Don did an all day fishing trip on a small boat. They had a great time and caught their limits of Halibut and Salmon. They had it shipped home, so we will be eating great fish. I can hardly wait for the Salmon. It arrives tomorrow.

Just as we were getting ready to head to the airport, we discovered two eagles in the tree above our cabin. We discovered them because it appeared that Mrs. Eagle was squaking to Mr. Eagle about some domestic problem. Check out the shot of Mrs. Eagle flying off when she just couldn't take it any more. Isn't it amazing what we read into animal behavior.

This is fireweed. You find it everwhere. Most of it was almost finished blooming. While we were in Seward it, some of it started to go to seed and suddenly silky hairs appear on the bloom. It is very common in Alaska, but a stunning plant.

Here is the cabin that we stayed in at Lowell Point. It was very cute and comfortable.

Gail on the deck of the Lodge overlooking Resurrection Bay. We love this spot. It was just across the street from our cabin.

Gail, Bob, Don and me on our hike to Exit Glacier. Exit is also part of Harding Icefield. And this is a free National Park. What a bargain!

TOUR OF KENAI FJORDS

This pictures gives you an idea of how big Holgate Glacier is.

We saw some eagles, but not as many as I thought we would.

We saw lots of wildlife, but I just loved the cute little otters. They were everywhere, including right off the deck of our lodge.

Here we are at the Holgate Glacier with is part of the Harding Ice Field. Yes, it's cold.

This was a rather cool day with a bit of rain, so Don, Bob and Gail are all bundled up.

Great Kenai Fjords scenery

OUR DRIVE TO SOLDOTNA AND TO COOK INLET
Looking down on the town on Ninilchik. Lots of Russin influence here.

Our 37th Anniversary pictures taken in Soldotna. This is cute little town with a great quilt store.

Here is Mt. Redoubt. I was glad it wasn't erupting.

FOOD

I was ready to post this blog and then I realized that I went on a trip and I didn't post anything about food. We had some pretty good food. We also had some pretty bad food. I didn't take pictures of that. I wanted to include some pictures of the food that we had. We mostly ate fish, both salmon and halibut, because that is what is nice and fresh in Alaska. Oh, I included the lemon because we paid $1.49 for a lemon at the store. I'm so used to a lemon tree in the backyard, that I couldn't believe that anyone could charge that much for one lemon. Oh well, we were on vacaction.