Remembering the Holidays - Christmas Eve

Okay, in honor of it being January 24th, I'm finally going to post about this past December 24th. It was a fairly typical Christmas Eve. We managed to fit in all of the normal traditions, and even discovered a new one. What fun memories we'll always have of Christmas 2013!

First up was a trip to the pool! Then Grandpa came home and it was time to make the traditional deliveries to the neighbors.

This year he even helped prepare the treats. While we were gone we had helpers set the table.

That was a nice treat for us!

Megan wanted to make a special treat for the family, and she finally decided on hot apple cider. I had some apple cider in the pantry that I bought a while ago to try a recipe that I thought Cody had sent to me, but which I had never gotten around to making. When we tracked that recipe down (Caramel Apple Cider), we discovered it was one Megan wanted to try! So we did. It was delicious, and was perfect for satisfying hungry tummies while they waited for dinner to be ready. We also decided this needs to be added to the list of traditions! (The next day we discovered it was the very first recipe in the book Elizabeth gave to Michelle. That just made us even more determined to make it again!)

 There was even time for someone to take a nap with the comforting company of Santa Donald.

 Working together to get dinner on the table.

The company was even better than the food, and the food was absolutely delicious!

Then it was time to hang the stockings,

and put out the treats for Santa. Grandpa and Wyatt were happy to have the assignment to make sure they tasted okay.

After that it was time for our annual Christmas Eve program - reading Luke 2 and singing our favorite Christmas Cantata along with selections from the Messiah. We certainly appreciated having some extra voices; it makes it just that much more beautiful!

Then it was off to bed. But first, here's a virtual treat for you - our traditional Rocky Road. We hope all your Christmases bring great memories!