The most wonderful time of the year

January is rough. I'm sitting here watching a nasty snow storm brewing outside. This after several days of rain and mud that got tracked all through the house. And this after some of the coldest temperatures I've ever experienced. I know, some Arctic dwellers are saying, "Waaahhh," but weeks of single digit degrees and me just don't get along. So I wish to take a mental departure and reflect on a few of my favorite Christmas things. Just a few. Humor me, please.

Now I know this is completely contradictory, but one thing I really enjoyed this year was our white Christmas. It snowed on Christmas Eve, so we woke to a winter wonderland. Of course, then I was done with it. But for the morning's ambiance, it was lovely. And moving on...

Ever since the kids were itty bitty, we have opened pajamas on Christmas Eve. I know this is a fairly typical tradition, but for me this hearkens back to my childhood when my grandma would make pajamas for all of her grandchildren under 12 years of age. I came closer to appreciating this feat -- she had 50-something grandkids -- when I saw a sale on fleece and decided to make p.j. bottoms for our family. Here was the final result:

Bonuses:
1) I could accommodate Caleb's freakishly long legs. Honestly, I don't think he'll ever be able to buy a pair of p.j.'s and have them fit properly.
2) Notice Aiden's shorts. He is always hot and won't wear pants to bed. So shorts it was.
3) Doesn't every grown man want dinosaur pajamas?
4) Oh, man, they're toasty. It's like wearing a blanket, without the embarrassment of being seen in a Snuggie.

A few years ago we decided to try something new for our Christmas Eve dinner. We picked a country, did some research, and planned a menu to represent that country. We also talked about how people celebrate Christmas there. I think we did Brazil that first year. Since then we've done Italy and Australia [I think that's it, but I may have forgotten one]. This year we did Argentina. That's where Jeremy went on his mission, and I was a little intimidated to try things he knew should taste a certain way. But I think we were pretty successful. The menu looked like this:

Appetizer: Empanadas
Main dish: Milanesas
Side dish: Ensalada Rusa
Dessert: Alfajores
Beverage: Ginger ale [cultural fail, I know, but oh well]

Here we are making our alfajores. They are basically cornstarch shortbread sandwich cookies spread with dulce de leche and rolled in coconut. Yum!

[I know I need practice taking food pictures. Not so pretty, but tasty.]

You can see in the background of one of the above pictures another of my favorite Christmas things. It's this:

My wall o' Christmas cards! Okay, I know it's January 27th, but the cards are still hanging. They keep me happy in the midst of wailing winds and blistering cold and post-Christmas doldrums. I have immense guilt for not reciprocating Christmas cards this year. SORRY!!! I hope my prolonged enjoyment of everyone's cards makes up for my neglect.

After Christmas my parents and brother came to visit. They were heading to Idaho to take Spencer to college and stopped here for about a week. It was the first time I'd seen Spencer since his mission, so it was good to have them here and spend some time. Extra bonus: my mom and I finished a 1000 piece puzzle in record time. We stayed up way too late a few times, but we got it done.

Every year I think about making gingerbread houses, and every year I don't quite get around to it. This year we did it. Not real gingerbread. I'm not that ambitious. Graham crackers did the trick, and I tried out boiling sugar for the glue. It was like magic. Those puppies weren't going anywhere. Cleaning up the aftermath was not one of my favorite things, but the process was still worth it. I doubt it will become a tradition, but I would do it again.

So there you have it. A few of my favorite Christmas things...and then I don't feel so bad!