Traditions........

It all starts the Week of Christmas with Piling in the car with hot chocolate and drive to see Christmas lights, not just any Christmas lights, but the tackiest ones we can find because honestly they are the most fun to look at.

Then Christmas Eve we start with fixing a dish called Créme Brulée French toast for Christmas morning and make an extra to take to friends (we have been doing this for years) which in return they give us a fabulous Lemon Meringue Pie which we devour after our Chinese food that evening. The Chinese food is a result of what happened 7 years ago on Christmas Eve when my grandmother passed away. We had been at the hospital after she went in from fainting the day before. After exploratory surgery one day later, she never came out. We were so exhausted and hungry around 9pm at night with nothing else opened, Tim ran up to a local Chinese joint and picked us up some dinner and we ate it in bed and made it a tradition ever since. It sounds sad, but it actually is a very comforting feeling to me and brings sweet memories of my grandmother on Christmas Eve.

Then the girls are allowed to open one individual present, which is always new pajamas (this year from Ireland, not the traditional Christmas P.j's) and one shared gift (always a movie) and we gather around in new pj's and watch the movie to help us stay awake so we can head off to the 11pm Christmas Eve service at our church and enjoy the celebration of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ by candlelight with our church family.

Bring the kiddos home (one normally still asleep from the first verse of the first Christmas carol sung, usually Silent night) and tuck them in bed. Then Tim heads of to the shop and his office to pick up hidden gifts that are too large to hide at home, which this year was a new bike for Elizabeth.

We head to bed usually by 2:00a.m. and this year was no different. Wake up around 6am and get the party started! Thanks for letting me share some of our tradition, enjoy the pictures of our wonderful weekend!

What are some of your traditions??