For the eighth day of Advent, we actually head out on the tour portion of our event! Rudi is hosting today, with a post about John Lennon, the Statue of Liberty, and Christmas. Head over and check it out.

But before you go, here is Miley Cyrus, Mark Ronson, and featured performer Sean Ono Lennon performing “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)”:

Thanks to Rudi to taking on a few of the dates for me. Should you want to do so, too, just leave me a note in the comments.

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. We held our annual tree-trimming party on Sunday and everyone had a lot of fun. Rudi’s friend, Anne, baked a GBBO showstopper, a chocolate mousse and raspberry cake, which was the highlight of the event.

2. Saturday, I played volleyball for four hours and then spent several more hours at a party with the gang. It was a very long, very social, and very pleasant way to spend the day.

3. Rudi and I had a date evening, stopping by the garden and then strolling into Georgetown. We stopped by a relatively new Lebanese dessert cafe, Pasha Castle, and were treated to samples of the wares. We settled on knafeh, which came with booza, a stretchy ice cream, and pashmak, a flossy cotton candy. It was delicious — rich without being overbearing and sweet without being cloying. We’ll definitely be sending our friends there.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?