“When I was a kid,” my mother, Jennie Moglia Carroll, reminisced, “Big Grampa (my great-grandfather) cooked the Feast of the Seven Fishes every Christmas Eve, and Mommy (my Italian grandmother, Agnes, who I lovingly called Nonny) used to help.” The Feast of the Seven Fishes is an American-Italian tradition that may have roots in Christianity […]

Kids tell us their favorite holiday traditions For years, Elf on the Shelf has meant Christmas to Cloe Stickney. Three years to be exact. Almost half her life. In Decembers past, the elf has been found playing in a bowl of marshmallows, eating jelly beans out of a candy cane-shaped container and having tea in […]

BOSTON — When Darren Kisgen decided to make a game, his only goal was to entertain his family. But over the past few months, the finance professor at Boston College has seen his game selling thousands of copies around the world and winning a big prize. “I’m surprised by all of this,” said Kisgen, a […]

Done with your holiday shopping? Me neither. I’ve been busy harvesting root vegetables and rounding up stray objects in the yard before they freeze in place. But I’m taking note of gifts for gardeners. I keep my eyes out for sturdy, useful tools that aren’t in everyone’sshed. Grab a catalogue such as A.M. Leonard’s, which […]

When one of the writers who regularly fill this “Eats” space each week suggested making December’s “Eats” all about personal nostalgia, with one or two favorite holiday recipes thrown in, I said “Absolutely!” Who had happier memories of “the most wonderful time of the year” than me? I grew up in Lisbon Falls with almost […]

I thought the young couple was going to pass me by, but I was wrong. I was wrong a lot that day. The young man was carrying a long package out of Walmart, a sound box purchased at a Black Friday price. His girlfriend was hauling several bags and they seemed to be in a […]