I was delighted to be invited to, and able to attend, a very nicely organized Ukrainian-Irish wedding.

I really enjoy weddings with numerous special traditions, intertwined with the typical wedding traditions, such as the cutting of the wedding cake, the garter and bouquet tossing, the mother-son dance, the father-daughter dance, etc.

I also like to photograph special decorations, the wedding cake, and other items that make the wedding different from all the rest.

This wedding also included many special rituals, practiced on many Ukrainian and Irish weddings.

I am very grateful to The Master of the Ceremony, who so kindly offered to share his copy of the explanations of these different rituals and blessings, which I could share with all of you.

The top picture in this post is the display of the Greeting Bread, The Korovai, Holy Icons,  Periwinkle Wreaths resting on an embroidered pillow, and gorgeous embroidered scarfs, “rushnyky”.  All these items have been used during the wedding ceremony and reception, and become keepsakes for the Bride and Groom.

This display is in front of the head table of the Bride and the Groom,  and the whole Bridal Party.

The Periwinkle Wreaths (or crowns in some churches), are placed on the heads of the Bride and Groom, during the Crowning Ceremony.  These wreaths represent love, purity, and fertility.  They are a symbol of dawn of the new kingdom to be ruled, side by side, by the newlyweds from this moment on throughout their married life.

The pillow for the periwinkle wreaths, was embroidered by one of the Groom’s  sisters, specifically for this special occasion.

The Korovai and the Greeting Bread was baked by the Groom’s 90 year old great-aunt, who also baked 6 beautifully decorated traditional Ukrainian Tortes, for the wedding reception.

The Korovai decorations (love birds, cones, Tree of Life branches) were created by the Groom’s sisters, who also assembled this whole Korovai.

The Groom’s mother was very proud of her Ukrainian heritage, and its rich culture.  She was passionate about Ukrainian embroidery, so I just had to capture a close up view of the intricate work on these embroidered scarfs (towels)- Rushnyky, displayed on the Korovai table.

Part of the wedding reception rituals was a traditional wedding gift giving to the Bride and the Groom.

These traditional gifts, would not be so traditional at a non-Ukrainian, or non-Irish wedding, but in this culture, they represent a long-standing tradition of bestowing gifts upon the Bride and the Groom on their Wedding Day.

Gifts can come in all forms, such as best wishes, friendship, homemade gifts, or store-bought gifts.  Some of the best traditional gifts are passed on from generation to generation.

Ukrainians and Irish have many such treasures to share, so I will share some of these with you, and include short captions of their symbolism.

Honey - is sweet as the love that binds the new couple.  They will adhere to each other for support and happiness.   Their sweetness will attract others to celebrate life with them.

Garlic – represents health and strength.  In presenting garlic, we wish them health and longevity, to enjoy many happy years together.  Garlic also supposed to ward off evil spirits from their home and family.

Irish Linen Hankie – a little Irish Luck is sure to come your way

by carrying this sweet hankie on your Wedding Day.

Pysanky - Hand decorated Ukrainian Easter Eggs.  The egg represents life, and new beginning.  The etchings on its shell are full of decorated symbols, representing health, happiness, love, eternity, and God’s Blessing.

Ukrainian Jewel encrusted Treasure Box filled with Gold Coins -  13 Gold Coins are given to the Bride as a symbol signifying that the Groom will support her.  The number 13, represents Christ and the 12 Apostles.  The coins hold good wishes for prosperity. They are housed in a traditional Ukrainian bejeweled box, representing the home.

There also was a bottle of Honey Wine (I did not capture it in my pictures), which was believed to be the best way to ensure a new and happy beginning for the marriage.

The Newlyweds also received a traditional gift of a 10 lbs. loaf of rye bread, which they shared with all the gusts later on.  This gift of bread signified well wishes of good luck, so their home and family will always have plenty of food, and never shortage of bread.

Another very special gift presented to the Bride and Groom, was this beautifully created ceramic plaque, with the Irish Blessing.  I was able to get a close enough picture to display the full script.

Now you know what I meant at the beginning of this display, that these “traditional” gifts are not so traditional at other weddings, yet they are very special to this couple, and add a special tough to their Wedding Day celebration, reflecting their family traditions.

Last, but not least, is the gorgeous Wedding Cake.  It looked stunning, and it was equally delicious.  To support the Bride’s Irish tradition, it was made with Irish Whiskey.  It was one of the best tasting wedding cakes I had in a long time.

You know how I love flowers, and admire beautiful crafts, thus I had to share a close up view of the wedding cake decorations.

Hope you enjoyed this post, and learned a lot about  wedding traditions you have not heard of, or seen before.

As for me, I am looking forward to another wedding, so I can take more pictures to share with you.

How are you doing with the Fat Smash Diet?

I am going strong, and hopefully you are still with me.

We are into the first week of Phase II, so additional foods are being introduced back into our daily menu.

Since I already have a very descriptive post of all these foods, you can just click on Phase II of the Fat Smash Diet to check it out.

Remember:

• Watch your portions
• Keep up with the physical activity
• Drink enough water
• Take your vitamins
• You will continue to drop pounds and inches.

If you need additional motivation, check out these super weight loss quotes.

You are doing great!

Hang in there, and please drop me a note about your success.

New Year Resolutions do not usually make it to the top of my list, but I am keeping some ideas on the back of my mind.

For a while now, I have been contemplating  getting back in shape, and improving my energy level.

I am also having a guilty feeling about not sticking to my healthy eating habits, and really miss the great feeling I experienced three years ago, after completing Phase I of The Fat Smash Diet.

I finally decided to follow The Fat Smash Diet once again, so this Monday, January 9th, I am starting Phase I  – Detox.

It would be great to have some company, so please join me, and you will LOVE yourself for it.

If you never tried this diet before, please read my post about The Fat Smash Diet, to get an overview of what to expect.

This is the easiest diet for me to follow, since during Phase I, the Detox period, I am not overly concerned about giving up coffee or alcohol;  I do not care much for either one of them anyway.

This past weekend I ventured out to get my special food shopping done.  I stocked up on a lot of fruits, raw vegetables, veggie burgers, brown rice, oatmeal, plain yogurt, and new Brita filters for my tap water.

I used to purchase bottled water, but after finding out that bottled water is not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, yet tap water MUST meet certain standards, I decided to go back to my Brita filter system.

The Fat Smash Diet regimen requires a lot of water consumption.  Probably as much as I normally should be drinking, so now I will be much more conscientious about it, and actually do it right.

What I love about this particular diet, is that all the ALLOWED foods, are my favorite any way, and even though I still love all the BAD ones, it is good for me to get away from them for a while, and cleanse my system.

It is an easy way to lose weight, and most of all, feel so much better.

I am hoping to lose at least 7 pounds, but 10 would be even better.

I know I can do it, since last time I lost 15 pounds without too much effort, and only gained back 7 lbs.

Please wish me luck, and tell me that you are joining me!

Ukrainian Christmas Eve is not only very rich in traditional foods prepared freshly that day, and shared by the family during the Christmas Eve 12 course meatless dinner, but also myriad of traditions are practiced before and after the meal.

This holiday was a lot of fun for children in the olden day, especially village children, as they had more freedom to frolic in the straw and hay brought into the home, and strayed over the floor and dinner table.  This act was a reminder for everyone of the nontraditional environment Mother Mary and Joseph faced that night, as they were awaiting the birth of Jesus.

Once the meal was all ready, and the children announced a siting of the appearance of the brightest star, the head of the household, normally the father or the grandfather, would bring into the home a beautifully arranged sheaf of wheat, and greet the whole family with a special greeting, and place the sheaf on wheat in the corner of the dining room.

Today, we usually have a flower arrangement with wheat stalks, or a dainty, miniature sheaf of wheat tied neatly with a red ribbon, and displayed in the home.

The above displayed picture of a miniature Ukrainian Ceramic Vase with Oats stalks, is my family replica of this Christmas tradition.  the Oats were grown on my Grandfather’s farm in Europe, and brought here on my last family visit.

A sheaf of Oats, rather than a sheaf of Wheat,  was our family tradition for Christmas Eve.  The sheaf was present in our home until the Jordan Water Blessing Day (Epiphany/Theophany), after which time it was sprinkled with the freshly blessed water brought from church, and given to the farm animals to consume.  Also, the Oats seeds were pulled off the stalks on New Year’s Day, and sprinkled at relatives homes, by the youngest boy of the family, visiting and greeting them with a special New Year’s greeting, to bring prosperity, health and good luck, in the new year.  He would be rewarded with tasty baked goods, and money.

In the city, these traditions were not possible to follow, due to small living space, so a handful of hay was placed in the middle of the table, or under a freshly pressed, pure white table cloth, rather than strewn all over the floor.

Kolach, a special bread adorned with a burning candle, takes the center stage on the dinner table.  Picture of this kolach was taken at a cultural display during a Ukrainian Festival in PA, prepared by an unknown to me contributor.

On the other side of the Kolach is a dish of honey, accompanied by chunks of bread, and peeled cloves of garlic (I use chopped garlic in flax seed oil).  Our family display also includes a special Christmas Eve wafer (Oplatek), normally used by Roman Catholics to share on Christmas Eve.  These wafers  are presented to us  by members of our family who also practice Roman Catholic traditions, as this unites us all together at least in spirit, on Christmas Eve.

This special arrangement is passed around the table and shared by everyone, right after we finish our before meal prayer, and  greet everyone with a special greeting “Khrystos Narodyvsia” -  Christ Is Born, with an appropriate reply “Slavyty Yoho” -  Glorify Him.

Another very important item for that evening is the Kutia. A  whole wheat grain dish, cooked and flavored by honey, poppy seeds, walnuts, and raisins.

In the past, the head of the household, would take a spoonful of the Kutia and toss it toward the ceiling, and the more of the grains that stuck to the ceiling the more bountiful the future crop would be.  This tradition died out over the years, for practical reasons of course.

Next dish served is the Christmas Eve Borscht with Vushka.

These special traditional foods, are followed by, several different fish dishes, including pickled herrings, a must at Christmas Eve.  Next you will be served varenyky (pierogi) with various fillings, holubtsi (cabbage rolls) with rice/mushroom filling, or buckwheat filling, mushroom gravy, cabbage with beans, other bean dishes, pickled mushrooms, kompot (cooked dried fruits drink), jelled fruit dish, and a nice selection of baked goods.

Pampushky (homemade donuts), were always my mom’s favorite dessert, prepared just before Christmas Eve dinner, so they were very fresh, and absolutely delicious.

After dinner, the whole family gathers around around the Christmas Tree to sing Christmas Carols.

Ukrainians normally do not exchange gifts on Christmas, since they already received gifts from St. Nicholas on December 6th, but in the Diaspora, the children receive small gifts from St. Nicholas, and then again additional gifts are exchanged on Christmas Eve, after dinner and caroling is all done, but before the midnight liturgy, which everyone is obligated, and encouraged, to attend.

Khrystos Narodyvsia – Slavyty Yoho!

Merry Christmas!

Children can be so cute, adorable, loving, and entertaining, most of the time, but we all know that they also can have their patience trying moments.

Stressful situations surrounding the environment our children live in, can add to their behavior pattern.

Children are like little sponges, soaking up unbelievable amount of information on daily basis, not exactly understanding it all, but nonetheless, absorbing it all none stop.

Someone sent me this very interesting link to a video of a child having a temper tantrum, and how  adults should act, or react, to this situation.

I am sharing it with you all, since during the hassle, and bustle, of the holiday season stressful time, you might benefit from being informed about such scenarios.

Here are a few quotes from that article, but you should click on the link to see the video and read all the details.

Tantrums turn out to have a pattern and rhythm to them.

“Screaming and yelling and kicking often go together,” Potegal said.

“Throwing things and pulling and pushing things tend to go together. Combination of crying, whining, falling to the floor and seeking comfort — and these also hang together.”

“You know, when children are at the peak of anger and they’re screaming and they’re kicking, probably asking questions might prolong that period of anger,” said Green.

“It’s difficult for them to process information. And to respond to a question that the parent is asking them may be just adding more information into the system than they can really cope with.”

The trick in getting a tantrum to end as soon as possible, Potegal said, was to get the child past the peaks of anger. Once the child was past being angry, what was left was sadness, and sad children reach out for comfort.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/12/05/143062378/whats-behind-a-temper-tantrum-scientists-deconstruct-the-screams

After you watch the video, please share your comments, or advice, for other parents to benefit from.

Are you stressing out because the gift giving holidays are closing in on you, yet you are still battling with a myriad of thoughts on the perfect gift for that someone special?

No worries!!!

Suburbangrandma is here to offer some simple advice.

Fist of all, you should try to make your purchases from your local businesses, small gift shops, craft shows, bazaars, farmer’s markets, hospital gift shops, etc. This way you will not only find fabulous gift, you will also support your local community, rather than some foreign countries which employ children in sweatshops, or do not follow any labor laws.

So, here we go with some gift ideas:

Gift Cards:

• Car wash – everyone loves to have their car cleaned
• Grocery Store - who wouldn’t love free grocery???
• Paying someone’s utility bill
• Movie Theater – include the popcorn and a drink, if possible
• Local Restaurants -  (kids might like fast food places, and some adults stay loyal to their favorite franchise coffee shops…)
• Beauty Salon – from a simple hair cut, to a total papering package
• Massage - foot massage, facial, body massage

If your budget is tight, you can do special things for your loved ones.

These  are the “Gifts from the heart” – as I call them.  They require some funds to start with, but mainly lots of TLC, and time, to complete.

Handmade gifts:

• Decorative ornaments - for any holiday theme
• Home baked goods – nicely packaged in tins, holiday bags, or a cup
• Homemade candy – also nicely packaged for a special touch
• Crochet gifts – scarfs, hats, blankets, pot holders, place mats, bookmarks
• Cross stitched items - bookmarks, ornaments, linen dinner napkins
• Cookies-in-the-Jar – all the dry ingredients for a cookie recipe, with directions
• Soup-in-the-Jar – same idea as for above cookies in the jar
• Hot cocoa – packaged creatively

There are also great ideas for teenagers, who are too young to have a job, but old enough to carry out these chores for their parents, grandparents, or any special person in their life.

Personalized Coupons:

• Home cooked meal - anytime, or for a special occasion
• Babysitting -  give the parents a break, and some time for themselves
• House cleaning – I bet everyone would love this one
• Gardening – weeding, planting bulbs, watering, lawn mowing
• Pet sitting, or pet walking – this one might eventually turn into a paying job later on

BEST GIFT OF ALL – Share your time with someone.

• Someone special
• Someone you do not get to see very often
• Friend, or neighbor, who does not have anyone to talk on regular basis
  
• Someone in a nursing home, retirement center, or a hospital

There are a lot of adults, and children, who do not have many visitors, yet long for someone to stop by and say hello, and to share a few precious moments together.

See, I told you not to worry.

Now you are ready to complete your list, and do the right thing.

As always, I like to engage my readers to share their gift giving ideas with all of us.

Thank you!

It is a proven fact that with weather changes, we also experience health related changes.

There are more people suffering from cold, flu, and other ailments, during Winter season, than any other time of the year.  Wouldn’t you agree?

Our healthcare providers do not encourage us to get flu shorts for the Summer, but as soon as Autumn approaches, flu shot requests are as popular as the gold rush.

During cold weather we tend to crave comfort foods, relax more, sleep longer, and stay warm.  Warm drinks, and hearty soups, also gain popularity.

I came across a very interesting article written by Dr. Mao, about longevity and Five Chinese secrets of maintaining health and energy during the Winter season.

Winter: the sleep of nature

The winter season is when nature sleeps, and everything experiences the slowing of natural processes — even our bodies. Humans stopped hibernating like their ancestral cousins long ago, but our bodies still experience the natural inclination to slow down in winter. The winter is a time to come back to quietness and rebuild your energy reserves.

I encourage you to read the complete article to be ideally informed, but I will post the headings of the Five Chinese Secrets to Winter Health:

1. Early to bed, rise when the sun is up

2. Be contented

3. Nurture energy storage

4. Eat for the season: no raw, cold foods

5. Avoid coldness and linger around warmth

So, what do you think?

Were you surprised by any of the items you read about?

How do you change your lifestyle during the cold winter season?

photo in this post was received via email – author unknown

If you think your mom and grandma were the only ones preaching that soup was good for you, especially during illness, some scientists agree with this theory as well.

Homemade chicken soup, also referred to by many as “Jewish Penicillin”, has been known for its “healing” powers for colds.  It is believed to inhibit inflammation, and break up congestion.

I am convinced that hot soup, hot tea with lemon and honey, and fresh garlic bread, are my best remedies for getting well from such recurring ailments as the common cold.

Soup is a winter staple that no one should be without, as it warms you up from inside out, and boosts your immunity.

Homemade soups made with organic veggies, are the best.

If you must depend on the manufactured soups, please watch out for the amount of sodium and fat,  they contain.

I will share some excerpts from an article I read in a post by Dr.Maoshing Ni.

The therapeutic value of soup comes from the ease with which your body can assimilate the nutrients from the ingredients, which have been broken down by simmering.

1. Lose weight with soup.

It has been found that people who eat one serving of soup per day lose more weight than those who eat the same amount of calories, but don’t eat soup.

2.  Build your immunity.

When you slowly simmer foods over low heat, you gently leach out the energetic and therapeutic properties of the foods, preserving the nutritional value of the foods.  Keep in mind that boiling can destroy half of the vitamins found in vegetables, so cook soup over low heat.

3.  Detoxify your body.

As a liquid, soup is already helping you flush waste from your body.  When you choose detoxifying ingredients, you are really treating your body to an internal cleanse.

4.  Warm up with a hearty soup.

Soups provide something the body craves in a cold weather. The Chinese nutrition would call this the “warming energy”.

5.  Get well faster.

When you are sick, there is no better healing food than soup.  The reason for this is that soups and stews don’t require as much energy to digest, freeing your body up to fight the infection.

Are you convinced yet of the health benefits your body is able to obtain from adding soup to your daily diet?

Preparing homemade soups might sound complicated and intimidating, but it is really very simple.

You can check out the soup recipes I already posted, but there are more coming up, so please stay tuned.

photo credit: AlishaV

Electrical fires are not a rare thing, and can happen to anyone, at any time.

Actually, I experienced it a couple of times as well.

My first experience was with my oven, as all of a sudden, the heating element started to smolder, and my whole oven lit up with flames. I turned the oven off, but the fire did not stop.  Finally I ran to the main fuse box, and flipped off the oven fuse, at which point the smoldering slowly subsided, and my oven started to cool off.

If you do not know where your fuse box is located, or which fuse switch is for which part of the house, you should learn it right now, and hopefully will never need to use this knowledge.  I was lucky enough to be familiar with our fuse box.

Another time was just as scary, since while I was away from home, my toaster oven “miraculously” turned itself on.  I was not even using my toaster oven that day.  It must have been heating at full blast long enough for the handle to fall off, the electrical socket, walls and counter top to get  too hot to touch.  Fortunately it did not cause a more serious fire, and to this day I still do not know what caused it.

I learned my lesson, so now before leaving the house I always unplug the toaster oven, the coffee pot, my curling iron, and any other small appliances I have plugged in…just in case.  I encourage you to do the same, because not only it will save energy (anything plugged in, even if not in use, draws energy), it will give you a peace of mind, while you are away.

Here are additional tips on preventing electrical fires in your home:

• Cover all unused wall sockets with plastic safety covers, if you have small children in your house (they love to stick their curious little fingers in there, or anything else they might be holding).
• Avoid running extension cords across walkways, doorways, and under carpets.
• Follow manufacturer’s instructions for plugging appliances into electrical outlets.
• Avoid overloading outlets, by not plugging more than one high-wattage appliance into each receptacle at one time.
• Install smoke alarms on every floor, and near all sleeping areas.
• Change smoke alarm batteries regularly. As a rule of thumb, change every time you adjust your clocks for daylight savings time.
• Replace, or repair any loose or frayed cords on all electrical devices (that includes your laptop).

If you have any other ideas on preventive measures for house fires, please share them with us.

It has been a while since I posted some  energy saving tips, which I usually find on one of the sites I often visit.

Today’s tip is about saving money on your heating and cooling, by having the right kind of windows in your home.

Today’s tip:  Multiply Your Pane

What?
Save money – and reduce global warming – by replacing inefficient windows.

How?
Clear, single-pane windows let as much as 84% of the heat out of a room. Get rid of them. In their place, install efficient windows, such as multiple-pane windows with low-E coating.

Why?

The average homeowner spends nearly 50% of yearly energy costs on heating and cooling. Window replacement can reduce that to just 20%.

Did You Know?

Cooling generally costs you about three times as much as heating. So if you live in a warm climate, you have even more incentive.

Check out your windows, and do the right thing to save energy, and money.