Sretan Božič! Merry Christmas!

I'm in my empty apartment, monday morning, with the sunshine pouring in and the sound of left over fireworks occasionally being shot off outside. Christmas has come and gone, and I must say, as much as I missed my family and my friends I'm quite proud of the croatian christmas we managed to pull off far from home, christmas stockings, or...well not much else. To be honest, Croatian christmas isn't all that different from my own christmas. A few traditions stand out:

1. Decorating the christmas tree. Croatians buy their christmas trees a few days before christmas. On christmas eve they decorate their trees. I suppose this eliminates the weeks of nervously watching the tree for accidental fires or yelling at the cat for knocking ornaments off the bottom branches.

2. Wheat grass. Maybe a week, maybe two, before christmas Croatians plant wheat grass in a small pot. The goal is a cute little pot of baby fresh grass to put under the tree. If you aren't so on top of things you can purchase these pots of baby wheat grass at any Croatian markets right before christmas... At our christmas we had an american AND croatian tradition: Wheat Grass and Mistletoe thanks to Bella and Sandra :)

You can see the christmas grass below, on the left side of the counter next to the candles, which are on a bed mistletoe...

Our christmas tree, thanks mom! And presents for white elephant gift exchange...

Caitlin wrapping Sarma the day before Christmas Eve under the guidence of Sandra...

My finished Apple Pie... Aunt Sandra's Pie Crust reciepe and Mimi's Apple Crumb Pie recipe.

The Sarma Mix: Ground beef, fresh parsley, onion, garlic, rice, and one egg. Mix with hands, roll into pickled cabbage sleeping bags (like egg rolls) and cook like a stew in a big pot with a bed of sour kraut in the bottom. after cooking for two hours, add paprika and tomatoes...

Sretan Božič sign! Playing Banana Grams after food, presents, and a few rounds of other party games...

The christmas trees for sale near my apartment...

making snowflake decorations...

I wish I was there with family and friends, but making a home away from home isn't an act of replacing, it is simply an attempt to, as katie would say, make the unknown familiar.

Love and Merry Christmas

Emily