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Borrego Springs, CA

Saturday, December 8, 2012

Christmas at the Chesser Homestead

Oh boy, I’m pooped!  A couple of weeks ago we had the Cane Sugar Syrup Boil extravaganza out at the Chesser Homestead, and today was the Christmas at the Chesser Homestead program.  Work hours were altered to accommodate the evening celebration. 

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All of the volunteers and Chesser descendants began work in the late morning to prepare for visitors and activities.  I had yesterday off, but other volunteers cleaned and polished the Homestead from top to bottom.  This morning, the Christmas tree and other decorations were added.  Family members had been baking cookies for three days.  Entrance fees were waved for visitors after 3:00 this afternoon, so people began arriving early before the scheduled 5:30-8:30 celebration time.

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Once the sun went down, things really began to happen.  A large pit had been dug in the sand beyond the front yard for a huge fire.  See those luminaries along the front sidewalk?  My job this afternoon with two helpers was to fold the more than 160 bags to accommodate the sand and candles.  These luminaries lined the winding trail from the parking lot, and surrounded the house.  It added a magical holiday feeling to the evening.

The Chesser ladies once again sang in their beautiful a cappella voices to lead the crowd in Christmas songs.  Free cookies, made from handed down Chesser family recipes, were offered to visitors along with hot apple cider or chocolate milk.  The day turned out to be nice and warm so the mosquitoes had a heyday, but we still ran out of the hot drinks an hour before everything was over.

Besides sitting around the fire and enjoying the singing, you could also take an old fashioned hayride through a portion of the refuge or enjoy visiting the decorated homestead with the glow of the oil lamps the only light.  Children were invited into the kitchen to decorate their own gingerbread girl or boy.  My job was to stamp each child’s hand with a blue goose (symbol of the National Wildlife Refuge system) before they entered the house, and monitor their entry so the helpers inside the kitchen were not overwhelmed with kids.  Needless to say, my fingers are a vibrant blue color this evening that won’t wash off for days!  It was hard to see those little hands with the stamp once the sun went down.  Open-mouthed smile

I told one little boy that it would take three weeks to wash that swan off his hand, and his remark to me was, “Cool!  Hope my mom doesn’t mind!”  Those kids were really proud of their decorating accomplishments.  I only saw one child that ate the result.  The rest protectively carried the cookie with them.

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One of the other volunteers found these two early visitors hiding out in the curl of a leaf in one of the plants in the flower box on the front porch.  Two little tree frogs tucked in one behind the other.  One was silver/grey and the other was bright green.  Cute little buggers.

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It was a long but enjoyable day today.  Seeing the homestead at night gave me a real appreciation for how these folks lived without electricity and everything else we take for granted these days.  Now it’s time to crash.  Goodnight all.

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

23 comments:

  1. Judy, that had to be a magical time watching the kids and adults share in an old fashion Christmas. Good on you and the other volunteers.

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  2. Sounds like a lot of work but worth it. I would love to see the refuge at night.

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  3. George Stoltz December 8, 2012

    Your last photo is absolutely stunning.

    What a wonderful memory for you getting to see the Old Chesser Homestead by lantern much the way it was decades ago. You helped create memories for many fo those young kids. A wonderful heritage they can share. Thanks for bringing it to us.

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  4. Absolutely fantastic that last picture!
    Sounds like you had a wonderful day; did lots of good. But the idea of my doing all that makes me pooped! It was nice to read about it, though.

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  5. Your days always tire us out and your pictures are always amazing

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  6. I agree - that picture is incredible. 160 luminaries - that sounds like a whole lot of work. I would have been eating my creation not taking it with me in my hand. lol

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  7. Lots of work...I would have snuck off to bed about 8PM..

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  8. So glad that you had such a great turnout and that the kids really enjoyed an old fashioned Christmas.

    We have lots of little tree frogs here, they are so cute.

    Kevin and Ruth
    www.travelwithkevinandruth.com

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  9. Enchanting.
    Now I'm wishing for a Blue Goose cocktail, made with a liqueur called Hypnotic. Very nice drink ;)
    And a cookie would not be out of the question...

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  10. What a great thing to do for the Christmas season.

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  11. How wonderful to see the home by lamplight! Adds another dimension to life as it was.

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  12. Really nice to see it done in the old homestead

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  13. I can see why you are popped. But what a wonderful tradition. Any idea how many people came for this great seasonal program?? So glad you got to experience it. I'd never have known about it otherwise. Thanks!! That's an award winning photo you close with.

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  14. Make that pooped not popped. Unless you feel that way too. ";-))

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  15. What fun. Any number of luminaries add magic to an event. Glad you had such a great turn out. They will need to make a few tweaks for next year and the hot chocolate.

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  16. What a wonderful way to get in the 'Christmas Spirit'. Looks like so much fun. I'll bet you were tired, that's a lot of work for those few short hours. So glad everything went well.

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  17. Love the reflection photo at the end ... peaceful and double the pleasure. Early Xmas at the homestead to put people in the holiday spirit; fun for sure and worth the hard work that went into it.

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  18. What a great party - glad you had a good time.

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  19. So now you're going to have a blue, blue Christmas... ;c)

    Sounds like you had more fun than the kids. It's okay, though, that's what they pay you the big bucks for!

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  20. Hi Judy, Thanks for stopping by my blog. I think I fixed it so there's no more word verification. Hope your holiday season is wonderful and your surgery goes well. Thanks again,
    -Pam

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  21. Oh what a fun Christmas celebration!

    Those tree frogs are too cute!

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