Weekly Update: 12.14.25

Christ be our light
Shine in our hearts
Shine through the darkness

Bernadette Farrell

I woke early on Saturday to make coffee and start some lussekatter — saffron buns traditionally made on St. Lucy’s feast day. It was dark outside as I warmed some milk to steep the saffron threads. It was my second time making this Swedish treat — the first time being the December before we moved out to our land. My family has a lot of Scandinavian heritage on my dad’s side, and I always enjoy rediscovering ancestral traditions.

I experimented with a new recipe this year, and I think the buns turned out well. I wish this recipe had been a bit sweeter, but we enjoyed the subtle yet delicious saffron flavor. The buns made a festive Saturday morning treat after a hectic week.

Last Sunday was the second Sunday of Advent as well as the feast day of St. Ambrose. We spent the afternoon decorating gingerbread cookies, which we had baked the night before. For dinner, we made homemade pizza, which was an old family favorite. We also made baklava as a nod to Ambrose’ association with beekeeping.

Since it was cold on Monday, we worked inside. Bonnie-Jean and Grace processed more pumpkins while I did some tutoring prep. This year, I’m tutoring my brother Levi’s kids in a couple subjects. I spent the day organizing materials for math and language arts. Then I sorted through our old piano books, getting organized to start giving the kids piano lessons again.

We took advantage of the warmer weather on Tuesday to do some major homestead cleanup and winterizing. We had planned to lay cardboard in several areas of the garden as a biodegradable weed barrier. Unfortunately, the wind had blown most of it around despite the rocks that were holding it in place. The cardboard had become quite a mess, so we cleaned it all up and moved it into a couple composting rings. We finished pulling out our tomato and squash plants. Bonnie-Jean planted and winterized our autumn mums in hopes that they will come back next year.

On Wednesday, Bonnie-Jean and I refinished our mom’s old quilt frame. Grace had sanded it a couple weeks ago, and we have been trying to find time to stain it. We did a one-step stain and polyurethane that turned out very pretty. We hope to hang it in our living room this week. Since we don’t think we will have time for quilting anytime soon, we plan to wrap the frame with twinkle lights to brighten up our living room.

I winterized our bee hives on Thursday, removing the feeders and adding a little insulation. When we sorted through our keepsakes and moved them into the bunkhouse, I came across an old baby quilt my mom had made me before I was born. It had become quite faded and a bit torn, but I had kept it for sentimental reasons. As I was downsizing my keepsakes to fit into our new small space, I decided to repurpose the baby quilt. It has a thick cotton batting that will make for the perfect insulation for the tops of our Layens hives.

While I took care of the bees, Grace finished sanding our upper shelving for our kitchen. Dad installed flashing over the ledger board we have over our deck. Next year, we hope to cover a portion of the deck.

On Friday, our brother Levi picked up some screws for us in Springfield. We have been working on a coffee mug rack for a couple weeks. We had ordered cup hooks, but the screws that came with it were a bit long for the boards we were using. I assembled the rack with the new screws on Saturday, and we celebrated by getting out our new holiday mugs. I love how the cup rack turned out, and I know we are all going to enjoy all the shelf space it will save.

Along with all our other tasks, we have been doing quite a bit of holiday prep this week. We planned the food for the next couple weeks — candy, cookies, and Christmas dinner. We also enjoyed some holiday cuisine. We had Mexican food a couple nights this week in honor of the feast days of St. Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe. We made flan for the first time in years, and it only took me and Grace four tries to get the caramel right. Still, the dessert was a success, so much so we made it twice this week.

The week ended with the feast of St. Lucy. We enjoyed some Sicilian chicken, pasta, and an Italian salad for dinner. After we finished eating, we lit a little candle chime our mom picked up. We had one when I was a kid, but we haven’t in years. Then, we all lit a hand-held candle, said a prayer, and sang a hymn. The holidays are always difficult times emotionally. The year’s losses and griefs always seem to make themselves present as we miss loved ones no longer in our lives — whether from death or broken relationships. Emotions can run high, as can tensions in our home. There were days we struggled to get along this week. As the candles all shone out, little lights in the darkened room — we were reminded of the meaning of the season. Christ’s light has already shone out in the world, and we are called to keep that light shining — especially when the darkness feels all too close.

In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1:4-5, RSV