Posts Tagged ‘Christmas’

I saw my sister Maria last week at my Goddaughters birthday party. I was ranting to her about how busy and stressed out I am with work. I mentioned I didn’t have an idea for my column this week and she said, “Oh, this is easy, bake Christmas cookies and share the recipe.”  Flailing my arms in the air, I respond, “But I don’t have time!!” Maria said, “Calm down. I have pictures of the Italian Christmas cookies from last year. You love them, lie and say you made them.” […]

You’ve seen Anthony Medina’s byline in the paper. He’s one of The Wave’s beat reporters. But he’s also an expert Coquito-maker, and this is the second year his family has been selling their version of the holiday beverage. In Spanish, Coquito means little coconut. It’s a traditional Christmas and New Year’s drink that originated in Puerto Rico. It’s made with Puerto Rican rum, coconut milk, cream of coconut, and sweetened condensed milk. Other spices and flavoring can be added like ginger, anise, nutmeg, cinnamon, or egg yolk. A few weeks […]

Monica Glynn, my work friend and The Wave’s Administrative Associate, asked me last week knowing I’m a “plant person,” “What’s the history of mistletoe?” Umm… I actually have know idea,” I said. We both thought, “This would be a timely column.” I remember the mistletoe in my home growing up as a kid. It wasn’t fancy, the exact opposite actually. Our mistletoe was a round ball made of hard plastic leaves and red berries. It had a vine of more plastic leaves that my father would hang from the light […]

It’s true. I started decorating for Christmas inside the house a week before Thanksgiving. Don’t judge! I like to take my time and enjoy the experience. But alas, Christmas traditions never fail and I traditionally have terrible luck with Christmas lights. This year, my indoor tree lights broke. Only half the string would light up. What made this so frustrating was that I bought two new sets only last year. I thought I’d be all good. How do these things break so easily?! The Grinch in me set in. I […]

After receiving this plant follow my care instruction in this article. Remove it’s decorations after the holiday to reveal a beautiful living tree in need of your attention. Sometime in August I was walking back from the gym when my neighbor Brady called me over. “Hey, you gotta sec?” He runs upstairs and brings down a very sad looking Charlie Brown type tree. “If anyone can save this, it will be you.” I was touched Brady thought of me as a plant healer! On inspection I knew this would be […]

How many poinsettias do you have in your living room right now? It’s custom to gift these lovely plants to friends and family during the holidays. You can find poinsettias just about anywhere this time of year – the supermarket, CVS, the hardware store, etc. Most of us throw them out when they start to lose leaves and look leggy. With some effort, you can learn how to care for this plant properly and enjoy it year round! I’ll share some tips and care instructions with you, but first, some […]

There’s a party every weekend. Friday and Saturday nights I’m trying to find a sparkly shirt or dress to wear. Preferably not the one I wore last week. I’ve eaten more cheese and antipasto than normal, not to mention cookies and chocolate, which I don’t even really like. I had my own “kick-off to Christmas” party the first week of December, which was a shining success. Balancing the parties, decorating and shopping with my increased seasonal workload is tough when you’re a freelancer working from home. Should I? A: Wrap […]

My favorite holiday has always been Christmas Eve, which Italians also call The Feast of the Seven Fishes. It’s been tricky to find out about the history, as it’s not celebrated in Italy. There’s no clear rationale for why it’s seven fishes*. The only thing we know for sure is that Christmas Eve is an official church holy day, so you’re not supposed to eat red meat. But the paisans beat the system, “No meat, no problemo! Let’s deep fry as many types of fish as we possibly can! Oh […]

Rockaway native, Jager James telling Santa his wishes for Christmas! Photo Credit: Beth Perkins Meet Santa and his elves this Saturday through December at the following locations! Bungalow Bar – Saturday Dec 2 – 11:30AM-3:30PM RBCA Tree Lighting in Front 0f the Library – Saturday Dec 9 – 2PM-3PM Rockaway Wish at Belle Harbor Yacht Club – Sunday Dec 10 – 1PM-4PM (There Usually Are Free Fun Things To Do For Kids At This Event) Shots with Santa at Seawolf (Brooklyn) – Saturday Dec. 16 – Time TBD Christmas Pop […]

Three different plugs for five sets of lights and I changed the fuse in one string (on my own). It’s been working for two nights now so it’s safe to say I got these damn lights working! If you missed my post on the Christmas Light Debacle, read about it here. Merry Merry!