Christmas Eve at home

We spent Christmas Eve at home this year. Usually we spend it with the Fillerup's, but had already had our get together earlier this week. The Mc side of the family had our get togehter on Monday for family night so we were not obligated elsewhere.

This week has been busy with family parties, last minute shopping and me sewing for last minute Christmas gifts. I made a gift for Madi this year, and taught the boys to sew. Drew made pajama pants, and Adam pillow cases. They did a good job, and I didn't have to do help too much. So it was a great relief to have everything done, except for the wraping by noon.

A tradition that I have had since I was a kid, was to attend a movie on Christmas Eve. It started several years ago, when my dad would usually get his christmas bonus on christmas eve or the day before. My parents needed time to shop and wrap, so we, all eight kids, would go to the movie. I remember seeing, Popeye, and several Disney movies. So this year, the older kids and I decided to go with my brother and his family that live nearby, and my mom saw the Tale of Despereaux. It was a cute show. We had read it a few years ago and knew the story. Jared and Luke stayed home, so Lukey could get a nap.

After the movies, we ran a few errands and returned home to a ham in the oven. It still had a few more minutes, so I got to rest a bit. I have a good husband. Well, it started snowing again, so Jared went out to plow, and the kids went to join him. They were going to sculpt an snow angel, but the snow was to dry. We put out the luminaries and then went in for dinner. We started doing luminaries about three years ago. The nearby town advertises them, so we buy a kit and put them out. I love them. It symbolized lighting the way for the Christ child. Luke was a good helper, and Jared lit the candles with a blow torch of all things. It was snowing by this time, and it helped get them all lit quickly. They were beautiful.

We had a cozy dinner of Ham, sweet mashed potatoes and salad. The kids wanted candleligt, so we did candlelight. We played christmas music, started a puzzle, and opened two gifts (Drew's and Adam's). The boy's were quite pleased with themselves and their gifts, and Madi and Luke loved the surprise. Especially Luke. He has a new pillow, and loves his new fish printed pillowcase. The kids left our cookies and a note to Santa and went to bed about ten. Relatively late for them, but considering they were bouncing off the walls, not bad.

It was a nice day/night, and we really enjoyed talking with each other and spending time together. It is great to have extended family traditions, but even better to have you own.