Christmas Dinner

Right after the wedding my parents left for Italy. Johnny and I came back to North Carolina with my brother and his girlfriend, Claire. We had a really low-key Christmas with just my God daughter and her family, us, and my brother. I loved the small Christmas. It was really fun company and just enough food to feed us, without going overboard with a gazillion sides and stress.

My brother cooked Christmas dinner, so no recipes, just sharing the day in photos!

First, he rinsed off the duck that had been brining for 48 hours.

Then, he scored the skin so the fat could render as it cooked.

Our first course was ...cheese. Just cheese. Lyn brought cheese, Michael brought cheese, and I had cheese. It was pounds and pounds of all kinds. Salami wrapped provolone, goat cheese, baked brie, and sharp cheddars.

Michael brought this wine all the way from California to share with us. He has been storing it for 4 years in a cellar, so we were really excited about it.

He was really proud of this "crust." Apparently it's sediment, and meant he stored it correctly on its side? He told me to take a picture, so I obliged...

All of the meal in progress-- busy kitchen!

The duck resting.

Awesome, crispy skin.

Really cute presentation. Legs, thighs, breasts, then wings.

My god daughter, Marissa, led us in prayer.

Then the family was ready to chow down!

The roasted duck with red wine cherry gravy.

Roasted teeny tiny potatoes with onions and garlic.

White wine braised kale with bacon.

The wine continued to flow...

...which led to funny faces...

...and new brother-in-law love!

After dinner, we went down the road to show the girls a really over-the-top decorated house. It's been on The Today Show and HGTV.

The Newlyweds!

Merry Christmas! :)

These are my confessions...

I haven't been cooking much lately.

My dad bought me this bottle of wine as a joke, but I think it's perfect.

Here's the back. So true, right?

Poe is so funny, he loves jumping on the bar stools and sitting up to the counter like he's going to be served. If you give him a fry this is his reaction every time! We love watching it and usually do it over and over, letting Corky reap the rewards!



All of you Glee tweeters, posters, and Facebookers finally piqued my curiosity and I started watching the first season on Netflix streaming.

Let's just say I was up until 6 am this morning watching while J happily snored next to me.

My favorites thus far (I'm only on episode 7 or 8 so don't ruin anything for me) has been I Could Have Danced All Night and Defying Gravity. Both were already personal favorites of mine, so it was cool to see them on the show because they aren't exactly BillBoard Top 100 chart toppers.

Also, is it normal to have fluctuating crushes between Finn, Mr. Shuester, and Puck?

I think Finn looks SO much like a knock off Stephen Colletti:


And Puck looks like he could be Shane West's brother:

Amiright!?! I know my hot boys.