Book Review: "The Christmas Shoes"

"The Christmas Shoes" by Donna VanLiere
Originally published in 2001
My rating: 4 out of 5

Warning: if you decided to read Donna VanLiere's "The Christmas Shoes," be sure you've got a box of tissues handy. This book is the very definition of a tearjerker. Normally I don't care for novels with super-emotional passages but the sentimentality of the book made it a good Christmas read.

"The Christmas Shoes" features the typical holiday themes of forgiveness, second chances, kindness, hope, love and faith. VanLiere introduces us to two strangers -- a workaholic lawyer whose homelife is falling apart and a young boy whose mother is dying of cancer. A chance meeting at a department store on Christmas Eve causes a life change for both characters.

I came away from this read with a reminder about how fleeting life can be and how important it is not to squander our precious time on earth. Though Christmas has passed, the meaningful messages in "The Christmas Shoes" ring true all year round.

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Mele Kalikimaka

For some reason, being away from my family this Christmas has hit me harder than the past two Christmases we've spent in Hawaii. So I set out to make it a memorable holiday season for us by dragging Jarrod along to do some Hawaii Christmas activities!

We went to Oahu's Christmas tree farm and picked ourselves out a (slightly oversized) Norfolk pine to adorn our living room.

We went to the Pearl Harbor Festival of Lights again this year. The boats used to transport vistors to the USS Arizona Memorial cruise around the harbor giving passengers a great look at all the Navy ships and submarines decked out in Christmas lights.

We also visited Hanapa'a Place in Kapolei to check out the storied Christmas tree made of Heineken beer bottles. The tree itself was amazing -- the lights in the bottles were timed to flash with Christmas music and it even had a train running around the bottom.

It was just a bonus that the rest of the cul-de-sac was decorated roof to yard in Christmas lights. It was like the Griswolds' house times five!

Last night we checked out the Honolulu City Lights display. The main attraction is the giant Shaka Santa and Mrs. Claus.

"Hau'oli Makahiki Hou" means "Happy New Year" in Hawaiian.

I came across a fun Christmas survey when I was checking out the blog Why Girls Are Weird and thought I'd participate too.

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate?
I love cocoa, especially the Ghiradelli kind. Jarrod and Conan both love egg nog. Conan goes crazy when Jarrod lets him lick the last drops of egg nog out of his cup.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
Santa wraps them, of course. That's why they always have special Santa-themed wapping paper and calligraphy-penned tags!

3. Multi-colored or white lights on tree/house?
We have multi-colored lights on both the tree and the house, although sometimes I think I'd prefer the more classic look of white lights.

4. Do you hang mistletoe?
No, but that's not a bad idea!

5. When do you put up decorations?
This year we hung the lights up a little earlier -- the weekend after Thanksgiving -- and picked out our tree the first weekend in December.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish?
Wow, this is tough. My mouth has started watering in the short time I've been pondering this question! We'll just say I love ALL holiday dishes, but right now I'm especially in love with homemade cranberry sauce.

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child.
Asking Santa for a sign that he does exist and receiving an elf bell in my stocking.

8. When did you learn the truth about Santa?
Third grade. I accidentally found all the letters I'd written and supposedly mailed to Santa in my parents' filing cabinet.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
We usually open one gift on Christmas Eve and the rest Christmas morning.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree?
Lights, ornaments (my mom made sure I left the house with plenty of Hallmark ornaments) and colored balls. We have a lot of ornaments already, but I've instituted a tradtion where Jarrod and I buy at least one meaningful ornament each year. This year we bought a gorgeous glass ornament from Kauai.

11. Snow! Love it or dread it?
Being from Colorado, I adore snow especially if it means a white Christmas. Unfortunately, there's no snow to be had on Oahu so I just have content myself with looking at all the snowy pictures my family sends from home.

12. Can you ice skate?
Yes! I even took an ice skating class in college.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift?
Hmm... that's tough. Maybe the pogo stick I got from Santa in elementary school.

14. What's the most important thing about the holidays for you?

Making happy memories and eating good food.

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert?
I love all kinds of cookies and treats, but my favorite evening snack at Christmastime is a cheese ball with crackers. I only get a cheese ball once a year -- it started as a tradition with my mom and me -- and I savor each and every bite.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition?
Watching "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation." My family even has some inside jokes derived from the movie -- i.e. "the Cousin Eddie," a wound-up swift kick to the behind.

17. What tops your tree?
Nothing this year. Our normal tree-topper wouldn't fit on our Norfolk pine. I was going to tie a bow on top but never got around to it.

18. Which do you prefer: giving or receiving?
Giving! I pick up Christmas gifts for people all year long and save them up until December.

19. Candy canes. Yucky or yummy?
I love anything peppermint!

20. Favorite Christmas show?
We watch them all -- Frosty, Rudolph, Charlie Brown. The new "Prep and Landing" Christmas specials are cute too.

21. Saddest Christmas song?
"I'll Be Home for Christmas." It was written during WWII and is sung from the perspective of a soldier overseas who's dreaming about spending Christmas at home. The Josh Groban version has clips of deployed military members sending Christmas well-wishes to friends and family back home and it almost makes me tear up. But maybe that's just because I know my husband is going to deploy soon.

22. Favorite Christmas song?
I like pretty much all Christmas music but my current favorite is "Carol of the Bells." When I was little my favorite song was "The Little Drummer Boy" on a vinyl record my parents had.

Spreading Christmas Cheer With Cookies

I have an annual tradition of taking plates of homemade goodies to my neighbors each December. Today was treat-making day and I had a blast baking and listening to Christmas music while it drizzled outside -- about the closest thing we get to wintry weather on Oahu.

This year I made my quick and easy chocolate fudge and experiemented with three new cookie recipes: cinnamon-sugar elephant ears, pecan-caramel surprises and ginger cookies.

I was really pleased with the results of all three recipes. The elephant ears -- incidentally, one of the easiest cookies I've ever made -- were my favorite.

The ginger cookies were amazing as well, although the dough was really sticky and difficult to work with. I eventually found success with the technique of dropping a small clump of dough onto a plate of sugar, covering all sides with sugar and then rolling it into a ball. The recipe was supposed to yield two dozen cookies and instructed bakers to make dough balls about the size of walnuts. Apparently I have absolutely no idea how big a walnut is, because I ended up with six dozen! But really... how could extra cookies be a bad thing?

Book Review: "The Christmas List"

"The Christmas List" by Richard Paul Evans
Originally published in 2009
My rating: 4.5 out 5

I've been reading as many Christmas novels as possible this holiday season and, not surprisingly, Richard Paul Evans' "The Christmas List" was my favorite so far. Evans makes a living predominantly by writing Christmas-themed books, so it's no shocker that I loved this fast-paced, feel-good story.

When we meet the main character, wealthy real estate developer James Kier, he's a total jerk with apparently no morals and no qualms about manipulating and destroying others to make a buck. He served his wife divorce papers on the same day as her first chemotherapy treatment for pancreatic cancer and he hasn't spoken to his son in months.

But James is forced to reevaluate his life when another man of the same name dies in an automobile accident and the city's newspaper mistakenly publishes an obituary for James Kier, ruthless real estate mogul. After Kier reads the hateful, vindictive and celebratory remarks people posted beneath his online obituary, he realizes that his current legacy is not the one he wants to leave behind. He is no longer the kind, generous and happy man he used to be. So he decides to make a change and sets out to rectify things, starting with the five people he's hurt the most -- his "Christmas list."

I've only read one other Richard Paul Evans book -- "The Gift" -- and though I enjoyed it I didn't go into "The Christmas List" expecting to love it. Normally, I'm not a huge fan of sentimental tear-jerker books. But, while this book was indeed sentimenal and a bit of a tear-jerker, it wasn't sappy. Despite the predictability of the plot, Evans' writing kept me turning the pages so quickly that I finished this book in just over two days. I closed the book thinking of second chances, family and love -- all perfect themes for this time of year. Happy reading!

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Book Review: "Blue Christmas"

"Blue Christmas" by Mary Kay Andrews
Originally published in 2006
My rating: 4 out of 5

I breezed right through Mary Kay Andrews' "Blue Christmas," which details the mishap-filled holiday season of antiques-dealer Weezie Foley. The book was short and sweet -- great for getting into the Christmas spirit fast. And since it's part of a series, you can always get more Weezie if you find the characters to be interesting and want to read a longer novel.

This book is one part sentiment, one part "Meet the Parents." It actually got me laughing out loud a couple times. Andrews' writing is fast-paced and sassy, and I think pretty much everyone would like this fun Christmas novella. Happy reading!

Furry Friday

Happy Furry Friday! Today I thought I'd share some pictures from the photo shoot we did in November with our friend, Li. She's a professional photographer and Army wife, and she's currently in the process of moving from Hawaii to the Washington, D.C., area. If you live there and want to do a photography session, Li is amazing! Plus, she's running a promotion that the first four people to book with Total-Li Photography in February or March will get 50% off! Visit her website or Facebook page for more info.

After much deliberation, this is the shot that we chose to send with our Christmas cards. Mele Kalikimaka!

But this picture is my favorite.

We did some pictures of just Jarrod and me too, but since this is Furry Friday I wanted to show you all the adorable pictures we took with Conan. I just had to sneak this one in, though. The sunset that evening just happened to be stunning!

Book Review: "The Christmas Quilt"

"The Christmas Quilt" by Jennifer Chiaverini

Originally published in 2005
My rating: 4 out of 5

"The Christmas Quilt" is part of the long and ongoing Elm Creek Quilts series by Jennifer Chiaverini. I've never read any of the other books (although now my interest in the series is definitely piqued), but even so I completely enjoyed this novel. It was an easy, heartwarming read and had all the themes a Christmas novel should: love, family, friendship, forgiveness, generosity, overcoming hardships, a happy ending.

We meet the main character, Sylvia Bergstrom, in present day and follow her as she reminisces about Christmases past, taking us on a journey back to the Great Depression and WWII. The nexus of the story is a Christmas quilt worked on by four generations of women, Sylvia herself, her Great-Aunt Lucinda, her estranged sister Claudia, and now her young friend and business partner at Elm Creek Quilts, Sarah. It's not hard to get lost in the tales and traditions of an old-fashioned Christmas, but Chiaverini keeps us hooked by slowly unraveling the story of what came between Sylvia and her sister, Claudia.

This was a good, quick, festive read and I enjoyed it. But I will give you a short disclaimer: this novel may make you want to take up quilting ASAP. But first you'll probably want to scour the internet searching for a  recipe to replicate the much-written-about Bergstrom apple strudel. Happy reading!