During this week between Christmas and New Years, what is your favorite thing to do? Shopping is the fav of my kids. (Yes, I have girls. How did you guess?) Reading is my husband’s particular favorite next to watching sports. I love gabbing with my sisters and NOT getting assigned babysitting duties. (My sisters have LITTLE kids aged 9 month up to 6 years.) Much of my family loves games, games, and games. (Catan anyone?)

So…what’s your pick? One lucky commentor will get a copy of In Good Hands, by Kathy Lyons!

Before I could decorate, I needed to weed through some of my treasures and part with a few that couldn’t be salvaged.  I was sorry to see them go, but a little relieved that I wouldn’t have to put out anything overly faded and worn this year.  That is, I was relieved until I realized I didn’t have much in the way of new decorations to take their place.

Welcome to my barren home for Christmas 2011! Now, I know that Christmas is an advertisers’ dream and that I’m targeted by companies large and small to buy extra stuff I don’t need at this time of year.  I try to be a good consumer and not load up on too much excess.  I can decorate with pine boughs from the great outdoors, after all. They look great and smell amazing, even though I sometimes have a nightmare cleaning up lost needles afterward. But who can decorate a whole house on pine boughs alone?  I’m not that crafty to make homemade decorations, nor am I creative enough to sort through my possessions and find *just* white and silver tidbits to put on the mantle in some Martha Stewart inspired themed extravaganza.

So I’m going to have to give in and shop. I was really looking forward to that until I peeked at a few catalogs and saw the prices on some cute things.  Geesh.  Can I really justify sixteen dollars on a wooden bird to sit on the mantle?  Eight-fifty for a linen dish towel embroidered with holly berries? Hmm.  Already I’m debating what more I can do with pine boughs.  And hey, remember our grandmothers used to string popcorn to hang on the tree?  I’m thinking that sounds like a wonderfully nostalgic approach.

While I’d like a welcome mat with a big snowman face on it, where do I put it the rest of the year?
Remember, I refuse to buy the color coordinated storage containers…   It looks like I’m going with the simple approach this year.

So I’ve got to ask, what’s your best economical decorating tip? Do you hang cookies on the tree? Put votives in used spaghetti jars for homemade lanterns? I’d love some ideas for simple things that even I could do
to make the house look cuter this year.  I’ll probably wait and buy those wooden birds for seventy-five percent off after Christmas so I can upgrade my décor next year.  But right now, I need something to tide us
over!

I’ve got my holiday themed Blaze, Under Wraps for one random poster.  Happy Holidays, all!

Christmas is when I pull out the cookie recipes I got from my mother and her Italian, Polish, and many other friends. They’re the kinds of recipes people keep in the family, and usually the kind you have to show someone how to make, because there’s always some trick or tip that defies being explained in the recipe. That means they’re made of memories as much as sugar and chocolate.

I can’t even begin to think of how many hours I spent in the kitchen with my mother, to all hours of the night, making all kinds of baked goods. She was a stickler, too — it had to be perfect, and you used every little bit of dough in the bowl. I can still hear her say “There’s a whole cookie in there — get it out!” LOL I say that to anyone I am teaching to bake, or baking with, if they don’t scrape all of the dough out, too.

At Christmas I make her date breads, her Italian Fudge Cookies, Biscotti, the Mexican Wedding Cakes (which she called Snowballs), the Rum Cakes, the Khrustyky, and others, and making these recipes is more than just the urge for a sweet treat, though they are definitely that, too. They are the way I connect with my mom and all of those memories every year, and how I keep her with me even though she’s been gone for almost fifteen years now.

Growing up, every Christmas Eve was also a birthday party in our house, as Christmas Eve was my mom’s birthday. I hope you’ll send a little birthday wish up for my mom this week, and then tell me about your favorite cookies and cookie memories (share and I’ll pick someone to get a signed copy of my December Blaze, I’ll Be Yours For Christmas).

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you!

Christmas is always a busy, stressful time of year, filled with expectations and calories and shopping and family. Great fodder for book ideas. I remember the moment I got the idea for DECK THE HALLS. I’d just returned from a handbell choir performance, got the kids in bed and was about to hit the shower when I remembered that I had to bake cookies for somebody’s pre-school class the next day. And they had to be homemade using the recipe the school sent home. I thought, “I wish I could hire someone to do Christmas for me.” And got the idea for the book. The SANTA SLEUTH was inspired by a newspaper article about a little girl’s search for the best mall Santa. I was involved in a Christmas program when I thought of the plot for THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE CUDDLY. Families and their expectations prompted both MR. DECEMBER, and CHRISTMAS MALE. LONE STAR SANTA was inspired by a cocktail napkin that said, “Donner and the Vixen.” That was my original title, but I didn’t get to keep it. However, LONE STAR SANTAS was the original title for CHRISTMAS MALE, so it all worked out. The carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas” gave me the idea for A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS because the giver gives his true love such an extravagant set of gifts. What’s more extravagant that a gift of twelve men?

One of the similarities in the books is the Christmas tree. All the trees are decorated with a mish mash of ornaments collected over the years and multi-colored lights, because that’s what I like.

To celebrate, I’ll give away books to 7 people who tell me if they prefer designer trees, where the ornaments have a theme and everything is color coordinated, or what I’m calling a jumble tree, with a mix of homemade, gift, and souvenir ornaments. Winners can choose my new Blaze or any of my backlist, as long as you understand that the older the book, the deeper I have to dig!

And the 7 winners are Patsy Roberts, EllenToo, CrystalGB, Chey, Cathy W, Robin Coll, and Laurie G! Please email me at Heather (at) HeatherMacAllister.com with your contact info. You can pick A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS or any of my backlist, which is on my website. And then I shall brave the post office. What was I thinking? :-O

A little self-indulgence now and then is good for the soul, I say. In my case, it came in an unexpected form this fall, when I received a store coupon for a Coach bag in the mail. I was going to give it to a family member to use, but as I looked for a winter bag and couldn’t find one, that coupon became very tempting. I thought, what if I used it for myself? Normally, I never even bother going into the Coach store, except to browse and think “why would anyone spend that much on a bag?”

Well, now I know. I decided I wanted to find THE bag. A bag good for the grocery store but nice enough to go out to dinner. Jeans or dress clothes. All seasons. It had to be perfect.

I found it. It took me three hours of walking around the mall to talk myself into using that coupon and buying it, but I did. As you can see, it’s a rather understated, classic bag, but I love the black leather and the silver hardware, the grommets, buckles and the adjustable strap. The leather is like satin — just touching it is a joy. I understand the difference now in the construction of a high-quality bag — the zipper opens and closes completely without effort, the strap is comfortable, the pockets are just right. I love every single little detail.

Even buying it was a treat. The sales people fall all over you, of course, and I love the little touches, like your receipt being all folded up nicely and put in a pretty little cardboard holder. It comes with a silky storage bag that it will likely never see. I am happy every time I look at it, take it somewhere, and get to coo over it with a friend. I have not had one second of buyer’s regret. In fact, I may be spoiled for life. My husband, bless him, didn’t even blink, never asked how much it cost. I showed it to him, and he admired the style and the liked the silver hardware, and then went back to what he was doing. Many, many reasons why I love this man.

So. . .that was my indulgence this fall, and I think it will be one that gives me a boost daily for a long time. What big or little things have you done for yourself lately? And if nothing, what would you like to do? The holidays, while fun, can be stressful, and a little self-indulgence is called for, I say. On that theme, maybe I can help you along a little. If you post here, I will pick a winner on Monday morning to receive the basket pictured to the left (the wonderful Joanne Rock and I put it together for you — full of bath items, books, and chocolate!). (Unfortunately, due to increased postage rates, I have to make this a US only giveaway, sorry.)

So I ask myself (and you), what is sexy about winter?

Well, for one, there is Blaze. I am very psyched about my December Christmas book, I’LL BE YOURS FOR CHRISTMAS, (Romantic Times, 4.5). It’s the first book I have set here in Central New York, at a pair of wineries set on Cayuga Lake just above the city of Ithaca, and it is very sexy (RT called it “Naughty…” ). The wineries I write about are fictional, but there are many wineries in the area, and a glass of Finger Lakes Wine will really warm you up. This could be another sexy thing about winter if you are curled up with a Blaze or your honey.

I guess the other thing I enjoy in the cold months is being able to haul out my quilts. If I lived in a warm climate, I would never have use for them. Cuddling under a big quilt on a cold night is definitely a sexy part of winter.

I do like flannel shirts. I don’t know if mine are all that sexy, but I love a man in a flannel…. That’s it. I’m out of sexy winter things, so you will have to help me out.

So. . .what do you think is sexy about Winter? Share, and I’ll pick someone Sunday evening to win an early copy of I’LL BE YOURS FOR CHRISTMAS. I’ll also add in one of the bars of soap I have had made for the book and some bath items (since a nice hot bath with someone could be a very sexy thing to do in winter!).

I really love the holiday season. And I don’t buy into this idea that we’ve moved away from what the season means. I personally think one of the coolest things about the holidays is that this month encompasses so many ancient religious beliefs bound up with newer ones. No matter if you’re Jewish or Christian, pagan or atheist, you can find something to celebrate this time of year. I don’t think that any of us have the market cornered on the meaning of the season. We celebrate the things that are meaningful for each of us. How cool is that?

If things feel over-commercialized this time of year, I recommend turning off live TV and sliding in a DVD or Bing Crosby in White Christmas. Or turning off commercial radio and testing out Loreena McKennitt’s gorgeous Midwinter Night’s Dream for some holiday tunes. Light some candles and remember to enjoy a few of your favorite things this time of year. Bake your mom’s perennial favorite holiday cookie recipe. Or simmer some nutmeg and cloves on the stove to just make it smell like your baking. The effect is as heavenly and calorie-free. For me, it’s not the holidays without hunting for the perfect tree, watching my kids sled down a snowy, or hosting a big shindig for the whole family.

Beyond those traditions, I have a few faith-based acts that help bring the meaning of the season home to me and my family. But I don’t discount the outward trappings of the celebration that make it so memorable and joyous every year. I hope you remember to pull your family close to you this holiday and enjoy a few of your own favorite things. Happy Holidays!

What are a few of your favorite things this time of year? Favorite holiday CD or film? Beloved holiday tradition? Share with me the sweet and simple things that make the season fun for you and I’ll give away a copy of Blazing Little Christmas along with the NYT Bestseller The Thirteenth Tale, to a random poster, sure to make for fun fireside reading!

Which is it for you–white lights or colored lights?

Kales Yiortes. That’s Happy Holidays in Greek. And, no, I’m
not using the generic greeting in deference to Chanukah and Kwanza (although we wish everyone a warm and wonderful Holiday Season). Rather, there are so many individual celebrations that fall inside the Greek 12 Days of Christmas that I’d be here all day writing them out, so Happy Holidays should about cover it.

Available at eHarlequin.com Now!

Ever since I (Lori) was introduced to Greek mythology, I wanted to be, well, Greek. Since that wasn’t possible, I did the next best thing and married one (becoming Greek by, um, injection, as one Tampa radio host put it). My first Greek Christmas experience came when I was twenty-two and actually in Greece. Talk about diving head first into the deep end of the baptism pool. I was raised Catholic in a place where menorahs are as common as Christmas trees, and icon kissing is frowned upon at best, sacrilegious at worst. But in Greece where the population is 99% Greek Orthodox…well, to say that the Holidays are celebrated to the nth degree would be understating things a bit. Then again, over the past twenty some odd years I’ve been married to Tony aka Adonis (yes, that’s really his name and he’ll always be my own, personal Greek god), I’ve come to understand that for the Greeks, to breathe is to live, and to live is to break plates.

On the third Day of Christmas my true love gave to me, three live hens, two wild boars and lamb’s innards on a silver tray…

The true festivities begin when you return from midnight mass to break the two-week Christmas fast, the house filling up with family (Tony’s parents’ place in this instance [we lived two floors up from them that year]), the table laden with food and huge bottles of wine ready to be poured. The first thing I learned was to try not to name the food being piled onto my plate (well, okay, it actually took me some time to learn this; call me squeamish, but lamb intestines is so not on my list of favorites), because to have goat meat served up beside whole roasted baby pig is not only common but the standard. And if you’re dining with the Greeks, you HAVE to eat. They stop just short of force-feeding it to you, but their methods are just as effective as saying “open wide.” This is the point where you really appreciate their custom of knocking back wine like shots of liquor and are ready to elevate tsatsiki (a very strong garlic-cucumber yogurt sauce) to a key spot on the food pyramid.

Ah, and then there was the dancing. When was the last time you went to your in-laws for the Holidays, ate dinner, then moved all the furniture out of the way so everyone could dance until their feet hurt, or until the wine ran out, or both? From Christmas Day on, imagine a nonstop line of joined hands and happy feet moving over a carpet of broken plates while traditional bouzouki music flows from the houses to fill the streets. Opa!

Up For Grabs in Our December Online Drawing!

And the traditions I learned that first Greek Holiday Season… There are so many of them, it’s so difficult to pick my favorites, but I’ll give it a shot. First, Christmas dinner is begun with Christopsomo, round Christmas sweet bread that’s crossed three times before cutting by the head of the house, a piece given to each diner. Another similar custom is the cutting of Vassilopita, a round New Year’s cake that has a coin hidden inside. Whoever receives the piece bearing the coin is said to have extra luck for the year. (This is done in each house and later at businesses, with “the cutting of the Vassilopita" a bit of a post-holiday party in the case of the latter, often times including the families of the employees so the season can stretch to February or until lent. Gotta love the Greeks!)

In all seriousness, until I experienced the Holidays in Greece, the 12 Days of Christmas existed as only a song for me. As a writer, I’ve got to appreciate the symmetry of the celebration. You have your beginning by way of Christmas, your middle via New Year’s, and your end with Epiphany. As a human being, this time of family togetherness and high spirits left me in awe and ready to face the New Year with a bag full of happy memories and, well, all partied out.

So if Tony and I could wish you three things they would be good health, the warmth of family (whichever way you define it), and a very strong stomach.

Kala Christouyenna kai Kali Xronia! (Merry Christmas and Happy New Year)

You can read an expanded version of the above, with pics by clicking here.