HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2017-12-21, Page 22PAGE 22. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2017.
Cookies
a tradition at Hamilton -Seeger Christmas
A sweet tradition
As part of a longstanding family tradition, Rhea Hamilton -
Seeger and her daughter Sarah started baking cookies
earlier this month. Sarah's son, two-year-old Andrew, was
on hand to help out with the family tradition that stretches
back four generations. Shown is Andrew helping out by
cutting and moving the cookies with Sarah behind him.
(Photo submitted)
By Denny Scott
The Citizen
Rural Voice contributor and master
gardener Rhea Hamilton -Seeger
says her family Christmas
celebration is heavily impacted by
being part of what she calls, "a
sandwich generation."
"We were part of the sandwich
generation, a group of people in their
30s and 40s, raising their own
children and caring for senior
parents," she said about herself and
husband Klaus. "In our case, it was
aging grandparents at first. By the
time our children were old enough to
be getting married, we were busy
taking care of parents."
She said that, in Christmas
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celebrations past, the Seeger
family's events made for a full house
and lasted several days. She said she
celebrated Chirstmas with her
siblings early as many were too busy
on Christmas Day to be there.
Christmas Eve marked a special
celebration with one side of the
Hamilton -Seeger family while
Christmas Day was celebrated by the
other.
Times have changed around the
house, however, with Rhea and
Klaus' children, son Peter and wife
Marilou and 15 -year-old grandson
Julien and daughter Sarah with
husband Chris and son Andrew,
having their own families and
starting their own Christmas
practices and traditions and not
having as many parents with whom
to celebrate.
"Half of our parents are no longer
with us and both our mothers are
safe in the nursing home," she said.
Rhea said that she and Klaus have
"learned to go with the flow" and
adapt to their changing Christmas
realities.
"We have developed new
Christmas traditions with our
children," she said. "Our daughter
has teamed up with me to make all
the Christmas cookies here. We have
a set list of favourites and we try at
least one or two new recipes every
year."
Rhea said there have been funny
moments over the years when
batches of cookies have been burned
and recipes haven't turned out
exactly as planned, but everything is
a learning experience to prepare for
the next Christmas bake -off.
"We're in our fourth generation of
Christmas cookie makers," Rhea
said. "One recipe is actually a fifth -
generation one, but I don't know if
the family practice goes back that
far.
"I started making cookies with my
mom and then, one year after I met
Klaus, our oven broke and I took the
cookies over to my mother -in-
laws'," Rhea said, explaining that
she ran into a difference of opinion
with her mother-in-law.
Rhea explained that she has
always been the sharing type and her
cookie recipes aren't an exception to
that rule. Her mother-in-law,
however, kept her cookie recipes a
safely -guarded secret.
"She made some cookies, but she
was always private with the recipe,"
she said. "I've always felt if you
have a good recipe, you should share
it, but she feels if you have a good
recipe you should keep it to yourself,
but share what you make."
While Rhea now has several of her
mother-in-law's recipes, she doesn't
Continued on page 38
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