A virtual holiday card from the Knox-Broyles family

God bless technology. I wasn't able to send out Christmas cards this year, but with the help of animoto.com, I made this video, which will give you a pretty good idea of what we've been up to this year.


Hope you all have had a wonderful holiday season!

The merriest of Christmases

We're having a blast with everyone in Austin. GaGa and my sister and her husband are in Missouri, stuck in one of the whitest Christmases in recent memory. It will be their memory, not mine, because on this sunny day, we are headed to Uncle Tom's house, where I'll hoping shoot more photos to add to this Flickr gallery.

In this set of photos, you'll see more of Ian-turned-Santa, the Statesman's Cookie Swap party that I organized, as well as our Hanukkah/Christmas/solstice/birthday party last week, where I fried latkes for everyone and our friend Jodi led a menorah lighting.

Hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season! Enjoy the snow for me, if you have it. It's been far too long since I've been surrounded by a peaceful winter wonderland.

Making gingerbread cookies for Santa with YaYa

Julian and YaYa set out to make a gingerbread house today, but it quickly turned into gingerbread cookies instead (thanks, partially incomplete Whole Paycheck Gingerhaus Chalet directions!).



We put the finishing touch — red, er pink, and green icing piped from plastic bags — tonight after Christmas dinner with my dad's family.






Santa will be getting these gems, which, if you ask me, are elegant enough for a Martha Stewart cookbook.

Too bad Julian ate all that icing! Santa could be stopping by any minute and he's not going to bed any time soon. I guess we'll manage.

Merry Christmas!

Who is this adorable Santa Claus...

...and why do I want to give him a big kiss on the lips?



It's really too bad Ian had to miss LaLa's annual Christmas party for the kids. He would have liked this jolly fellow. :)

---

Update: It appears Santa even made a stop by our house earlier this week.

Keeping bees

Beekeeping holds a special place in my heart because my great uncle Lee was a beekeeper. I never got to suit up with him, but last month, I got to don a suit and go with Konrad Bouffard, who runs Round Rock Honey.



I shot the above video and a bunch of cool pictures, which you can flip through in this gallery on Austin360.

Thanksgiving in Galveston

We're in the middle of one of the best trips in recent memory. Like the California trip, but with Julian.

Galveston has become the beloved temporary home of our friends Penny and Christina. Christina is going to school just a few blocks away from their historic home. They've allowed us to stay at their beautiful, peaceful space for a few days while they are celebrating Thanksgiving with their families elsewhere.

Our families are in Missouri, Waco and Fort Worth, but we're here. Everyone needs a break from tradition, especially when I've spent the past month up to my ears in turkeys, pies and sweet potato casseroles for work.




We had our own little Thanksgiving dinner yesterday, with smashed potatoes, greens and lamb from my friend Mr. Loncito Cartwright.




Before the girls left, La Espanola Christina made a seafood paella that would have made Sofia, Diana and the rest of mi familia espanola proud. We all sat around, scraping the socorat off the bottom of the pan. A communal meal. An early Thanksgiving.

But getting away, just the three of us, has been so nice. We explored the marshes of Galveston State Park yesterday, and who knows what the rest of the trip holds in store.








More when we return!

Julian, the baker

On my quest to bake as many of the recipes submitted to the Statesman's virtual holiday cookie swap as possible, Julian and I went to our food blogger friend's house. Kristin has four little kiddos herself, so Jules got to play with them and help us bake.

Halloween in Missouri

We're getting back into the swing of things in Austin after our trip to Missouri over the weekend. It was time for a fall visit, something I don't think I've done since I was pregnant with Julian (which meant I couldn't ride the roller coasters at Silver Dollar City. Yes, I was pissed, but I'm over it. :))

Just Julian and I went; Ian needed some time to record his next album, and everyone knows that a break from the norm does everyone wonders. Going to Missouri as a family has been the norm for a number of holidays, which is why we aren't going back for Thanksgiving or Christmas. I don't think I've missed both since I lived in Spain, but we need a break from the traditional fall/holiday schedule.

The trip this time was one of the best. The leaves were crisp and bright yellow and orange. We went to a pumpkin patch and on a hay ride. Stopped by a Marionville orchard to buy apples and hot cider. Ate both cashew chicken and blue corn popcorn. Hung out with one of childhood friend Lindsey's new baby and all the Missouri family members, which now includes Mimi and Woody, my dad's mom and stepdad.

Trick-or-treating was a blast, even though Julian didn't want to wear his costume. My sister took the cake with her Mary Poppins outfit. My mom and I, as usual, raided her closet. The dress I'm wearing she remembers wearing when she was pregnant with Chelsea.

History. Family. Home. All in one neat little package called Aurora.

Missouri Halloween forecast: Cloudy with a 100 percent chance of meatballs

Our little meatball got to have a practice run on Tuesday at his daycare's Halloween party. We're off to Missouri today to spend the candy-filled weekend with my family, which means I had to unstuff his costume and we'll restuff it there.

Fall, I hope you are as excited to see me as I am to see you.

Living the sweet life

Ian and I got to go to La Dolce Vita last week, one of the premiere food events in the city. Thankfully, Aaron and Sarah hung out with Jules so we got to play. Annie Ray, a local photographer, does these fun photo booths at events around town. Thanks, Annie, for the great shot!