Merry Christmas from Scotland... and Southern California

Our friend Iris came to visit for Christmas and we couldn't be happier -- especially since she came with gifts from SoCal. We haven't had Herdez or Cholula for months! Tonight we'll be making Christmas Nachos with Scottish cheddar... Of course we took her to the Gluhwein hut at the Edinburgh Christmas Festival and then we hung the Wellie liners on the radiator with care. Here's a little montage of our Christmas with Iris. We hope you are having a wonderful day, full of Christmas Cheer!

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Video Blog: The Kids' First Snowfall

BYOB to Demijohn

If you were to judge us based on our words and actions and, dammit, even the photographic evidence on our blog lately, you might think we're on the Boozy World Tour 2009. And, so as not to disappoint, I found another really unique and interesting alcohol-y place to visit today. A while ago I saw the website for an Edinburgh store called Demijohn, and so yesterday when Brenna said, "Hey let's go to Edinburgh tomorrow" I said, "Yeah sure, I hear there's a nice little

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Shotguns and Glocks

Perthshire, Scotland: It's a quiet Saturday, just post-rain. The ducks are having a gathering at the pond, and Owen and Ella are outside making a map of an imaginary land they created. The distant sounds of a shotgun ring though the still, damp air. Some lucky lady will be plucking a pheasant for tonight's dinner!

Canoga Park, California: It's a quiet Saturday, just post-rain, so I expect I'll be rear-ended on the 101. The CPAx13 gang is having a gathering in Lanark Park, and Owen and Ella are outside... Oh shit, "Brenna get the kids in the house!" The distant sound of a Glock 9MM rings through the air. Looks like Joker and L'il Puppet won't be home for dinner tonight.

Video Blog: Back to the Crannog Center: Experimental Archaeology

We had such a blast at the Crannog Center for Samhain (Halloween) that we vowed to go back so we could actually see the crannog in the daylight. What's a crannog?

Crannogs are a type of ancient loch-dwelling found throughout Scotland and Ireland. Most are circular structures that seem to have been built as individual homes to accommodate extended families. Other types of loch settlements are also found in Scandinavian countries and throughout Europe.

We made it to the Center on the last day they were open until next spring. They were celebrating the day with a Wild Harvest Food Festival, featuring only period Celtic foods. We ate pumpkin soup, lamb stew, barley with rosemary, and bread baked in a wood fired mud oven. Owen was excited that he found a small rock in his

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