I Need Your Help, Dear Readers

Sorry to abuse my blog in such a way when I'm barely entertaining y'all anymore. I'm working on two warm and fuzzy holiday articles, and I thought maybe y'all could help me out. Here are the details:

Article 1:
It's Not the Holidays Without...
What dish defines the holidays for you the most? For an example, for me, it's my grandma's ricotta cookies at Christmas. Everyone sneaks around before dinner trying to find them, everyone has tried to make them just like my little Italian grandma and failed, etc. If I didn't have them every Christmas, it just wouldn't feel like Christmas. Entrees and appetizers are also welcome.

Article 2:
A Holiday to Remember
Here, I'm looking for anecdotes about memorable holiday experiences. Like that time you got stranded in a snowstorm and couldn't make it home and ended up having the best Thanksgiving ever, or something else unexpected and wonderful happened. Or just a regular family get-together that ended up being extra-special for whatever reason. I definitely want to hear about the food, but more about how being with whoever you were with, or doing whatever it was you were doing, made it an occasion you'll always remember.

So, if any of you have any dishes or stories that you'd like to share, please send them to jess@blindcavefish.com before Friday! You'll be credited for your story, of course, and if you give me family recipes, your moms and grandmas will get credit, too.

P.S. I promise to be more entertaining really soon. I'm cohabitating as of yesterday, which should be hilarious at least some of the time. Also, I'm almost almost done with those stupid vampire novels, which will free up a lot of time for me.