When I was a kid, Christmas was an easy holiday. All I had to do was sit there, try not to tell anyone what they were getting for Christmas (I usually only knew like, two gifts and most years I made a deal with one of my brothers to tell them what they were getting if they told me what I was getting. So...let’s just call that even)...and eat a lot of junk food. Oh...and stay in bed until the big hand was on the twelve and the little hand was on the seven.
It seemed like a lot when I was young...but now? Piece of cake. Especially the part about staying in bed.
These days, now that I’m mostly an adult, I’ve learned that Christmas can be a lot of work. Especially in a country without a Superstore or a Walmart. Or a mall. Granted, I’ll be the first to admit that I tend to put things off until the last minute and starting to shop for twenty one people on the 23rd of December probably added to my work load a little.
Fortunately I live in a country of Ken’s and no one else started any sooner either, so...it was all good. The market Christmas Eve was...beyond describing. I’ve mentioned this market before...it’s huge and jammed with little shops all randomly thrown together. Until you’ve Christmas shopped with 10, 000 of your closest neighbours....you haven’t really Christmas shopped. At one point Andres (who was helping me) and I walked out onto one of the larger aisles and in both directions it was so jammed with people I wasn’t even sure where to go. People were literally pressed right up against each other. I looked at him and the crowd of heads and said, “That makes me want to cry.”
We left the market at about 7:30 PM and the line of cars trying to get in went on for blocks. This was Christmas EVE! Bolivians celebrate Christmas Eve at midnight. That’s like us in Canada shopping Christmas morning at 6 AM. Which granted, some of us probably would if we could. But not EVERYONE.
Like I said, we got back to the house at 9 PM (I had some grocery shopping to do as well). Fortunately Maribel had organized the guys and the 10 kilos (22 lbs) of pork was already cooking in the oven. I came home with a happy supply of fireworks and firecrackers, so we fired off a few of those to get things warmed up. When we were buying them, I’d told Andres that most of what we were getting was illegal in Canada. He was surprised and couldn’t figure out why. Then we lit off a firecracker called a “Mother-in-Law Killer” (don’t blame me...I didn’t name it) and it threw a rock back across the yard and hit a kid in the back leaving a big welt. I turned to Andres and said, “That’s why they’re illegal in Canada...”
Speaking of the “Mother-in-Law Killers”....I guess technically they’re “prohibited” now (illegal). I asked Andres to ask the guy if he had any and Andres said that he was sure the guy didn’t. I told him to ask anyhow. It was like we were buying drugs...Andres kind of turned his head away from the crowd and asked in a low voice if the guy had some. The guy didn’t say anything, he just gave a quick nod and then pulled a box out from underneath the table. It was kind of awesome. And before you all write me and tell how bad that was....what father hasn’t bought his kid illegal fireworks at some point in their lives. It just makes me a good dad. Or if not a good dad, at least a cool one.
At midnight we, and one point five million other people in Santa Cruz, fired off as many fireworks and firecrackers as we could. The entire horizon lit up like we were in a war zone. If you haven’t experienced it, it’s tough to explain. My guys are kind of idiots when it comes to fireworks. A couple of times they checked to make sure they still had all their fingers...but over all, it was fine. In that they did still have all their fingers.
After our midnight supper (more like 1 AM after the fireworks were done), it was time for me to wrap presents. Andres helped me (he knew what everyone was getting anyhow) and we finished at about 3:30 AM. The last few presents looked like Papa Noel had been knocking back a few too many “Eggnogs”, but the guys didn’t care. They only care what’s inside the pretty paper. =)
I didn’t get cooking breakfast until about 9 AM. Any earlier and I’d have had to kill someone at some point during the day. Last year “breakfast” ended up taking me about three hours to make, so this year I came prepared. I found a mix for cinnamon muffins in the American aisle at the grocery store, so I made those first to tide the guys over. I wasn’t sure if they’d like them or not (it’s weird the things they like and don’t like sometimes), but no worries. Sandro just kept walking around going, “Excelente! Excelente!”
For breakfast I made a man’s quiche. =) Home cut fries on the bottom with green peppers, onions and sausage, with whipped eggs and milk and cheese on top. It was tasty. It wasn’t ready until 1:30 PM...but it was tasty. I also fried up a couple of pounds of bacon. Bacon is crazy expensive here, but Christmas morning is Christmas morning. So...bacon.
After “breakfast” we opened presents. That’s always a highlight for me. I mentioned before that Christmas presents are a new thing for most of the guys. So it’s enjoyable. It’s like Christmas with a bunch of little kids. =) I mostly got them clothes which they like and all need. After the gifts we read the Christmas story and took some time to pray and give thanks for everything God’s done for us. It was a good moment.
Then it was time to start cooking those three crazy turkeys I had thawing out in the kitchen. Every year we don’t have any leftover turkey, so this year I decided to make sure we would. Our pastors and their wives and another family were coming over, plus all the guys and Maribel...and I had no idea how much food I’d need...so I figured...lots...
The guys helped me wash the turkeys and put them in their pans. Two of them had to share a pan, so Jose Carlos put their little turkey wings around each other and said that they were friends even in death.
I didn’t stuff them (we were running late by now) so I put all the stuffing in a couple of big tinfoil packs and then put those on a cookie sheet and balanced that on top of the turkeys in the oven. I don’t have roasting pans, so we’d just made little tinfoil tents for them. I tell you this because when I came back four hours later, the cookie sheet and the stuffing were weirdly tipped over to one side. I was like, “Where’d my turkey go?!”
The pan with the two turkeys was fine, but the other turkey was strangely flat. I’d forgotten to take the tinfoil off for the last hour and there was a lot of liquid in the pan. Suffice to say that he’d boiled (I was going to say to death, but...) and he was really well done. He fell apart when I was trying to take him out of the pan. No one got drum sticks since the bones came out without any meat when I tried to pick him up. But he was really, REALLY moist and still quite tasty. No one here’s ever seen a nicely roasted, crispy brown turkey so...who cares really. Tasty was all that counted.
The other two turkeys were still partly raw. I have no idea why.
We got all the food on the table and by the time we’d eaten the first turkey, the other two were ready for seconds. I also made a cool salad with Romaine lettuce, strawberries, roasted almonds and a dressing that had Worchester Sauce in it. I like it a lot, but again...I wasn’t really sure how it’d go over with the Bolivian crowd. But no worries...even the guys (who just kept shaking their heads when I was making it) thought it was good.
Bear with me for a moment...I’m going to do a little patting myself on the back...this year was the best yet for the cooking. My first try went fine a couple of years ago, but I’ve figured out a few things since then. This year went over very well. =) The guys...who as we know, like to eat...kept telling me over and over again how good it all was. This year I learned how to make gravy (thanks Ron and Mel) and when I ate a little mashed potatoes covered in gravy...I nearly cried. So...it was a good night. =)
Okay I’m done...now for a few pictures. Thanks to all of you who made it this far without skipping ahead...
Ever had the grandparnts buy Christmas presents that made your kids forget all about your Christmas presents 30 seconds after they opened them?
Christmas can be a tough for the guys. Me too for that matter. It's such a family oriented time. For the guys it really reinforces the fact that many of them don't have family. So it was important to me that we have a meaningful Christmas and have some fun too. I think we managed to pull it off. =)
Thanks everyone for your prayers and support. Have a great week and a Happy New Year!
It seemed like a lot when I was young...but now? Piece of cake. Especially the part about staying in bed.
These days, now that I’m mostly an adult, I’ve learned that Christmas can be a lot of work. Especially in a country without a Superstore or a Walmart. Or a mall. Granted, I’ll be the first to admit that I tend to put things off until the last minute and starting to shop for twenty one people on the 23rd of December probably added to my work load a little.
Fortunately I live in a country of Ken’s and no one else started any sooner either, so...it was all good. The market Christmas Eve was...beyond describing. I’ve mentioned this market before...it’s huge and jammed with little shops all randomly thrown together. Until you’ve Christmas shopped with 10, 000 of your closest neighbours....you haven’t really Christmas shopped. At one point Andres (who was helping me) and I walked out onto one of the larger aisles and in both directions it was so jammed with people I wasn’t even sure where to go. People were literally pressed right up against each other. I looked at him and the crowd of heads and said, “That makes me want to cry.”
We left the market at about 7:30 PM and the line of cars trying to get in went on for blocks. This was Christmas EVE! Bolivians celebrate Christmas Eve at midnight. That’s like us in Canada shopping Christmas morning at 6 AM. Which granted, some of us probably would if we could. But not EVERYONE.
Like I said, we got back to the house at 9 PM (I had some grocery shopping to do as well). Fortunately Maribel had organized the guys and the 10 kilos (22 lbs) of pork was already cooking in the oven. I came home with a happy supply of fireworks and firecrackers, so we fired off a few of those to get things warmed up. When we were buying them, I’d told Andres that most of what we were getting was illegal in Canada. He was surprised and couldn’t figure out why. Then we lit off a firecracker called a “Mother-in-Law Killer” (don’t blame me...I didn’t name it) and it threw a rock back across the yard and hit a kid in the back leaving a big welt. I turned to Andres and said, “That’s why they’re illegal in Canada...”
Speaking of the “Mother-in-Law Killers”....I guess technically they’re “prohibited” now (illegal). I asked Andres to ask the guy if he had any and Andres said that he was sure the guy didn’t. I told him to ask anyhow. It was like we were buying drugs...Andres kind of turned his head away from the crowd and asked in a low voice if the guy had some. The guy didn’t say anything, he just gave a quick nod and then pulled a box out from underneath the table. It was kind of awesome. And before you all write me and tell how bad that was....what father hasn’t bought his kid illegal fireworks at some point in their lives. It just makes me a good dad. Or if not a good dad, at least a cool one.
At midnight we, and one point five million other people in Santa Cruz, fired off as many fireworks and firecrackers as we could. The entire horizon lit up like we were in a war zone. If you haven’t experienced it, it’s tough to explain. My guys are kind of idiots when it comes to fireworks. A couple of times they checked to make sure they still had all their fingers...but over all, it was fine. In that they did still have all their fingers.
After our midnight supper (more like 1 AM after the fireworks were done), it was time for me to wrap presents. Andres helped me (he knew what everyone was getting anyhow) and we finished at about 3:30 AM. The last few presents looked like Papa Noel had been knocking back a few too many “Eggnogs”, but the guys didn’t care. They only care what’s inside the pretty paper. =)
I didn’t get cooking breakfast until about 9 AM. Any earlier and I’d have had to kill someone at some point during the day. Last year “breakfast” ended up taking me about three hours to make, so this year I came prepared. I found a mix for cinnamon muffins in the American aisle at the grocery store, so I made those first to tide the guys over. I wasn’t sure if they’d like them or not (it’s weird the things they like and don’t like sometimes), but no worries. Sandro just kept walking around going, “Excelente! Excelente!”
For breakfast I made a man’s quiche. =) Home cut fries on the bottom with green peppers, onions and sausage, with whipped eggs and milk and cheese on top. It was tasty. It wasn’t ready until 1:30 PM...but it was tasty. I also fried up a couple of pounds of bacon. Bacon is crazy expensive here, but Christmas morning is Christmas morning. So...bacon.
After “breakfast” we opened presents. That’s always a highlight for me. I mentioned before that Christmas presents are a new thing for most of the guys. So it’s enjoyable. It’s like Christmas with a bunch of little kids. =) I mostly got them clothes which they like and all need. After the gifts we read the Christmas story and took some time to pray and give thanks for everything God’s done for us. It was a good moment.
Then it was time to start cooking those three crazy turkeys I had thawing out in the kitchen. Every year we don’t have any leftover turkey, so this year I decided to make sure we would. Our pastors and their wives and another family were coming over, plus all the guys and Maribel...and I had no idea how much food I’d need...so I figured...lots...
The guys helped me wash the turkeys and put them in their pans. Two of them had to share a pan, so Jose Carlos put their little turkey wings around each other and said that they were friends even in death.
I didn’t stuff them (we were running late by now) so I put all the stuffing in a couple of big tinfoil packs and then put those on a cookie sheet and balanced that on top of the turkeys in the oven. I don’t have roasting pans, so we’d just made little tinfoil tents for them. I tell you this because when I came back four hours later, the cookie sheet and the stuffing were weirdly tipped over to one side. I was like, “Where’d my turkey go?!”
The pan with the two turkeys was fine, but the other turkey was strangely flat. I’d forgotten to take the tinfoil off for the last hour and there was a lot of liquid in the pan. Suffice to say that he’d boiled (I was going to say to death, but...) and he was really well done. He fell apart when I was trying to take him out of the pan. No one got drum sticks since the bones came out without any meat when I tried to pick him up. But he was really, REALLY moist and still quite tasty. No one here’s ever seen a nicely roasted, crispy brown turkey so...who cares really. Tasty was all that counted.
The other two turkeys were still partly raw. I have no idea why.
We got all the food on the table and by the time we’d eaten the first turkey, the other two were ready for seconds. I also made a cool salad with Romaine lettuce, strawberries, roasted almonds and a dressing that had Worchester Sauce in it. I like it a lot, but again...I wasn’t really sure how it’d go over with the Bolivian crowd. But no worries...even the guys (who just kept shaking their heads when I was making it) thought it was good.
Bear with me for a moment...I’m going to do a little patting myself on the back...this year was the best yet for the cooking. My first try went fine a couple of years ago, but I’ve figured out a few things since then. This year went over very well. =) The guys...who as we know, like to eat...kept telling me over and over again how good it all was. This year I learned how to make gravy (thanks Ron and Mel) and when I ate a little mashed potatoes covered in gravy...I nearly cried. So...it was a good night. =)
Okay I’m done...now for a few pictures. Thanks to all of you who made it this far without skipping ahead...
First...the fireworks. There were a lot...
That would be a "Mother-in-Law Killer" he has in his hand.
Roberto with one of the pans of pork...
Andres cutting it up...
Sitting around the table...at 1 AM...
Andres with the first stack of presents wrapped.
3:30 AM
"Breakfast" at 1:30 PM...
Trust me...it was tasty. And big...
Santa's little helpers...
Opening presents...
Aron "helping" with the turkey...
The foosball table arriving...
Fortunately I'm pretty happy with having
a foosball table in the house.
In my parent's defense...it was my idea.
But yea...no one cared about my presents after that. =)
Eating supper!
Andres with one of his sisters...
Noelia, Vivi, Tonchi and little Eduardo....
And of course we finished off the evening with a little foosball...
Christmas can be a tough for the guys. Me too for that matter. It's such a family oriented time. For the guys it really reinforces the fact that many of them don't have family. So it was important to me that we have a meaningful Christmas and have some fun too. I think we managed to pull it off. =)
Thanks everyone for your prayers and support. Have a great week and a Happy New Year!
4 comments:
Oooh, foosball!! Brilliant, Ken! Although now that the boys are practising I don't think I'll ever have the balls to come back. Merry Christmas to you and all the boys!
....with love from Ryan Myers!
Good job!! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the farm where it is -1. Feliz Navidad! Jud & Diane
Wow, I am so glad I got to do all my Christmas shopping up here... But it looks like you guys had a really fun day! Good work with the food! :)
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