A New Tradition...

DH loves Christmas Trees. Who doesn't, right? I mean, I love them and all too but more in theory than in practice. They smell great, look great and are surely festive but man, are they messy. Plus, there's the whole fire hazard element but we won't go there. That's exactly enough of the Bah Humbug spirit!

Since we decided to stay local this year, I insisted we take advantage of the local trade and chop down our own from one of the many Christmas tree farms in Sonoma County. 

There's more Christmas tree farms than you'd know what to do with out in West County. How DH landed on Frosty Mountain Farms was beyond me. All the same, we arrived an hour before sunset and were directed to grab a saw and dolly and be on our way.

With over 12 acres of trees, most of which are Douglas Firs, there was a lot of ground to cover before the sun dropped completely. While walking up and down the field of trees, DH declared, "Wherever we are, let's make this a yearly tradition". I concurred.

There were loads of winning trees but we set our hearts on a smaller tree with several pine cones near the top because really, who can resist a Christmas tree with its own pine cones in it!? 

(No one is the answer)

DH set to sawing it down, a task we both reconciled would be extremely difficult but in reality was surprisingly effortless. At $7.50 a foot, our hand-sawed Douglas Fir was just under $40. 

To the first of many family traditions to come!

Christmas Breakfast; Kauai Style

For as long as I can remember and probably long before that, my parents have hosted Christmas morning breakfast. Being a nuclear family of three, it was a big shift having the 9 McFadden's up to the house. The festivities have only grown over the years as spouses and children have come into the mix. Somehow though, there's always enough space and food to go around. It is, and long has been, my favorite Christmas tradition. A very close second being Christmas pajamas!

Being the food obsessed lunatic I am, I've been controlling the menu for the last six years. I've managed to drive just about everyone crazy with my elaborate baked eggs, stratas and egg sandwiches.

This year though, DH and I decided to go out of town for the holiday, but that doesn't mean the tradition would die. I was relieved to hear my cousin Maggie would take the reigns at home. As for us, after an idyllic sunrise dip in the Pacific, we whipped up some macadamia nut pancakes and poached eggs. Since we didn't have any real maple syrup and since buying any on this island would cost more than my car payment, I decided to make a syrup!

Instead of maple though, I opted for a ginger infused simple syrup. 
Dee-licous! 

DH is and old pro at the poaching station so the eggs were perfetto too!

Hope the family is managing without me...mele kilikimaka everyone!