Christmas Twenty Thirteen // The Day

Here I sit, cuppa peppermint tea in hand, typing up my final Christmas 2013 post.  I still can't quite grasp that this year is almost gone.  It's been the happiest and also one of the hardest years of my life, and the Lord has blessed me throughout all of it.  But this isn't my years end post, this is my Christmas Day post...

I've had a beautiful Christmas this year.  Honestly, they just keep getting better as the years go by.

My Christmas began on Christmas Eve.  Still recovering from a bit of a cold I picked up somewhere, opening my dear friend Winnie's package - clearly marked "open December 24th" in red ink - was just what I needed to cheer me up. *smile*

beautiful handmade fingerless gloves + yummy Christmas goodies + tea = a warm and happy person

Later, my bro and I settled down on my bed to watch A Christmas Story while feasting on summer sausage, saltines, cheese, and chocolate.  It's tradition!  (Only I skipped the chocolate this year since I've been recovering from that cold.)  There is no other film which gives me the giddy feeling of being 10-years-old and joyously anticipating Christmas morning like A Christmas Story.  They so perfectly captured what it's like to be a kid, and it's contagious.  By the time we're finished, my bro and I are bouncing up and down on the bed...we're both over 21.  Still kids at heart. *grin*

Bonnie thought we were selfish, not to share our sausage with her. ;)

And then, before you know it, it's Christmas morning!  We opened presents with my mom and dad and then dad read us the account of Jesus' birth from Luke 2.   My daddy surprised me with a new lens for my camera (a 55-200 mm), and my bro gave me a Star Wars graphic tee shirt (I may or may not have sent him a link and told him to buy it for me;).  My dad gave my mom the entire dvd collection of Road to Avonlea, so we watched a few episodes while I peeled potatoes for our Christmas dinner.

After feeding the animals, I got to work on the rest of dinner.  Bro was in charge of cooking the ham and mashing the potatoes, while I put together candied yams and a pecan pie.  I had never made a pecan pie before, so it was experimental.  It ended up being cooked for too long, so it was more like candied pecan pie than an actual pie.  Well honestly, how do you tell when a pecan pie is golden brown??  Oh well...my grandparents brought cheesecake, so it was all good. *wink*

The ill fated pie, before it was baked to a crisp.

Dinner was delicious, if I do say so myself...and I most certainly do. *smile*

And after dinner was over, and my grandparent's headed home, it was time to sit, relax, and watch more Road to Avonlea while the Christmas tree lights twinkled.

Merry Christmas!!
How was your day?  Did you spend it with family, friends, or both?  I want to know!