Christmas Eve at my parents' house was such a good time this year. We have a tradition we started long ago in our family to have vareniki for dinner, then have a little 'party' for my brother Vlad since it's his birthday, and then we open our Secret Santa gifts. It's so much easier to buy one gift for five people than something for everyone; easier on my sanity and on my wallet, so I am all for it.
We were all together this year as Julia and Yuriy joined us for Christmas, and now that Natalia has two kids, our group is getting bigger and bigger. :) Adele is the star of the show these days, with her chubby thighs and gorgeous, gorgeous eyes. No wonder no one can resister her!
We stuffed our faces with five types of vareniki--potato, cabbage, sweet cheese, blueberry, and cherry, with lots of bacon and sauteed onions for the savory ones. Oh, it was delicious! I have never tried anyone's vareniki that are better than my mom's, ever, and I'm not just saying that cause I'm her daughter. They're soft and fluffy and overstuffed with filling, and hopefully someday I will master them as well. For now I just look forward to the times she spends all day slaving away in the kitchen for us.
Again, Ben loved his Zoku pop maker and Mila was disappointed with her alphabet cookie cutters (she picture above). She loves to bake, so I thought that would be a fun and useful gift for her, but she didn't buy it. ;) I just failed all around with their gifts this year... Natalia, on the other hand, actually made a tent for my kids and one for her kids. I can't believe she took that kind of project on with two littles at home and no carpentry skills. I would never be able to build something out of wood. I'll take a picture of it soon to show you--such a good gift.
xoxo,
Tanya
2 comments:
This was so much fun. Glad we were finally present for one of the family events! Didn't realize you took so many photos too. There will be thousands between the three of us!
I want to see yours!
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