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Walking into a grand lobby elegantly decorated for Christmas is always an exciting and fun time for me.  The thrill and excitement must have been anchored into my soul during childhood when we made our annual trip into the big city during the holidays. I was mesmerized by the lights and decorations everywhere and especially the elaborate department store window displays. I vividly recall  a ‘scene‘ with an electric train running through the toys and other gifts around the base of a Christmas tree. And often Santa himself sitting in a big chair in the midst of it all,  handing out candy canes to visiting children. Inside the store were lots of lights and tinsel and towering trees and oversized ornaments…. certainly more impressive than our pretty but simple small town displays of colored lights and small trees.

So last December, when I happened to walk into the Desert Ridge Marriott in Phoenix, AZ,  I was delighted to see the majestic grand lobby in all its glory with huge pots of Poinsettias everywhere and wreaths hanging in the floor-to-ceiling windows. There was no Santa handing out candy canes, but there was a delightful play area for children with a table and supplies for writing special letters to Santa — complete with a mailbox for posting them!

The center of attention in the lobby, was the electric train display: A giant 20’ square display of several trains traveling around and through architectural landmarks built of chocolate! In fact the entire scene was made of food items (nuts, dried fruit & berries, coconut, cookies, raisins, cereal….)  It was amazing! Not beyond description, but since ‘a picture paints a thousand words’, see for yourself…. remember, this was last year but I understand that the display was such a hit, a similar display has been constructed this year with a “gingerbread village featuring a Willy Wonka-esque fantasyland” which will be on display through January 2, 2011.  AND it is my understanding that other hotels have joined in with similar displays, so check them out for your area!–search online for ‘(your area) Christmas Events’ OR specific hotel.com sites. Let me know about the Christmas discoveries you find. 

With Christmas fast approaching and Thanksgiving long past, I am wondering if I will ever get caught up. The Christmas cards are almost all addressed and most of the packages are wrapped. But before we move on to Christmas Cookies and other goodies, did anyone make the Booze Pie?  I was sooo tempted but will save that for a larger gathering (like my sister’s where they had 14, or so, pies on the dessert table at Thanksgiving — truly! Makes me feel a little light-headed even without the booze, just thinking of all those choices!)

At our small family gathering, we settled for a favorite (Apple) and a traditional Pumpkin Pie. Over the course of the holiday feasting, we also enjoyed Pumpkin Cupcakes and Choco-Mint cookies (from the Urban Cookie (post to come soon, I hope!), and Pumpkin Top Cookies from the Queen Creek Olive Mill (another much needed post)

But back to pies – the family has agreed that Schnepf Farm gets the #1 rating for Best Apple Pie and now their Pumpkin pie is also at the top of the list. Not being a fan of pumpkin pie, I usually have just sliver- for tradition, but THIS one is different (and doesn’t even need whipped cream!) – perhaps because Schnepf Farms is the best pumpkin patch in the area, so the pumpkins are perfect for pie. They also grow apples! – so the pies are filled with fresh, organic fruits (is pumpkin a fruit?)

We ordered early to make sure we’d be on the list and arrived at the farm at the arranged time to pick up our pies. The Country Store and Bakery was filled with an amazing aroma of baking, and pies, dinner rolls, and cinnamon rolls were stacked on cooling racks, tables and shelves. Ours were boxed and waiting for us….still warm!  Now THAT is FRESH! We were tempted to just sit in the car and eat the pie right there!