Merry Christmas

My grandmother's bird from her tree.

The holidays are a magical time.  Yes, there is a lot of stress leading up to the holidays with buying the perfect gift, deciding on the menus, decorating the house, but once Christmas Eve comes, it is a time to relax and enjoy the season. 

Some of my fondest memories are of this night.  When I was little, we would wait for my dad to come home from Mass before heading over his his parents, my grandparents, for our traditional Christmas Eve party.  The first party was stictly for family (when I was older, I understood that there was a more adult party with adult beverages later after we left).  The drive to my grandparent's house was filled with anticiapation as we couldn't wait to see what presents were under the tree. 

We didn't spend a lot of time with my dad's parents so any time that we were together was magical.  We would record our voices on tapes singing Christmas carols, dress up and put on a fashion show, and played with old time games like marbles.  Grandpa W also liked to sing or pull quarters out of our ears. 

Our Christmas Eve night was always special.  Grandma would have a spread of food, including a family recipe for Saurkraut soup, punch, cold cuts, and yummy cookies.  At the end of the night, we would drive home listening to Christmas songs on the radio and oohing and aahing over the beautiful holiday lights. 

The holidays were so much fun with my grandparents.  We didn't get a lot of toys, but the love and caring was evident.  So on this Christmas Eve, I want to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas, filled with the joy and wonderment of the season, the love of family and friends and the magic of amazing possibilities.