Over the years, my mother has gotten more creative and festive with her Christmas decorating. Recent additions to our holiday display include the above "punch bowl filled with ornaments" and things like large hurricane vases filled with a huge candle and cranberry garlands.
Of course, there are also the many eighteen-inch-tall Santa Clauses scattered around the living room. This one may be my favorite--Santa of the forest.
There's also this derpy little face waiting to see what her doggy best friend has bought her. Hint: it's a toy, and it was already in pieces around our family room by nine p.m.
Our tree, as usual, is a mish-mosh of collected ornaments over the thirty-three years of my parents' marriage. We have ornaments for each of our dogs, alive or dead, as well as ornaments that I made in preschool. My parents also have a tradition that they purchase a new ornament whenever they travel somewhere. We have things like starfish on our tree from Antigua to a wooden Mountie from Calgary.
Every year, I discover new ornaments and re-discover ones that I'd forgotten about. I can (and do) sit staring at the tree for extended periods of time, just admiring the lights.
Sitting under the tree this year was an unbelievably awesome gift--my first DSLR. After using my roommate's Canon to shoot food in LA, I got hooked on the idea of my own. I'm now the proud owner of a Nikon D3200! I can't wait to continue to share more photos (like the ones in this post!) as I get used to the world of fancy photography. Thanks, mom and dad.
Of course, what would Christmas be without food? The day started with homemade, from-scratch cinnamon rolls. It then continued with mince pies for lunch, and then an early dinner of: turkey (and tofurkey); mashed potatoes; roasted carrots, parsnips, and brussels sprouts; stuffing; green beans; and cranberry sauce.
And don't forget the bubbly!
Though really, the Christmas Pudding is the best part. Dad saved the day by coming home one day with the greatest pudding we'd ever eaten, since Mum couldn't find one at any of the local grocery stores. +1 for you, dad.
Of course, Christmas isn't complete without the scenes of domestic chaos... aka the third dishwasher load of the day.
Of course, we watched A Christmas Story and enjoyed a roaring fire at the end of the day.
We've spent the past week skiing and relaxing, enjoying time together as a family. Grandma's here to visit, and it's wonderful to see her, as always.
I hope you had a great holiday yourself, and have a very happy New Year! Stay tuned, because I have a lot planned for this little blog of mine in 2014. There are some big changes on the horizon, and I can't wait to fill you all in.
Until then--have a wonderful, relaxing last day of holiday merriment!
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