Merry Christmas, everyone! It’s hard to believe we have made it to Christmas week already. I have been loving all the beautiful lights, music, and joy of this season.
I never stop listening to Christmas music until New Year’s Eve night, when I officially switched the radio from Frank Sinatra holiday radio to an 80s rock station for our New Year’s Eve party.
But this year, our Christmas will extend into the first weekend of January. It’s nice because it really drags it out and makes it last longer. We will celebrate with my in-laws in Connecticut with the rest of our family shortly after Christmas, which will be so nice. My sister-in-law’s (my brother’s wife’s) family comes to PA from Virginia, and at the same time, we go to Connecticut, so Christmas Day with Dad and Mom will be after the new year. Obviously, with my parents being divorced, it’s two separate Christmases. They are both special in their own ways.
I look forward to each Christmas in a different way with each one of our parents. They all get a day all to themselves to have Christmas with their kids and grandkids. We all each have our own little special traditions that we all look forward to together.
Now, I don’t want to get ahead of myself here. I hate when people rush Christmas. It’s December 19th as I am writing this. I am looking forward to so many fun things planned for the next two weeks. We walk up Candy Cane Lane tonight. Saturday, ride the Polar Express and have our ugly sweater dinner party with all our best friends at Turbotville Public House. (Amazing place to eat if you have never been there! The food is delicious!) We go there every year for our Christmas dinner party together. We then have our Christmas Eve candlelight service at our sweet little church and our annual Christmas Eve party afterward. Then we patiently wait for Santa to get into town! A sweet little tradition we started when our kids were smaller was watching the Santa radar on WNEP news. My momma has had her Christmas Eve party since I was eleven. So, my own kids grew up with going back to Grammy’s after the candlelight service after church. When we got home, they couldn’t wait to see where Santa was on the TV. That got them straight off to bed and asleep fast. Both of our kids still enjoy turning it on to see where he is. I think no matter how old they get, it will always be our thing until they move out. Then Chris and I will turn it on to see where he is. I mean, we have to make sure we are in bed before he gets here! For heaven’s sake, I can’t have him pass us by. *wink wink*
I tried to prepare as much as I could this year, which I shared with you a few times this year. Guys, I thought I did so good. I had a great head start until December came, and I still felt overwhelmed and rushed. Doesn’t help that for two weeks, the flu went through our entire house. Ugh. It really set me back but thank God we are healthy for the week of Christmas. I truly thanked God for that.
I just have to wrap my hubby’s gift and a few family members’, and then I am about done with the wrapping. I just have a few more stocking stuffers to get for Chris. Another one of my favorite little traditions that we both look forward to. We have always made each other stockings since we have dated. But when we got married, we started this funny little tradition of opening stockings, and it makes it last so much longer. We try to guess what the gift is before we open them and keep score to see who gets the most right.
Guess who wins EVERY. SINGLE. YEAR? ME! Yuppers. I smoke him every year. The kicker? Every year, he tries to stump me so he can win by wrapping the gift inside a toilet paper roll or covering it with something to throw me off. But guess what? I still guess it! He laughs and says, “How in the heck did you guess that!?” I am a pro at this point. I seriously don’t think he has ever won a year, and the sad part is I truly don’t make his hard or CHEAT and try to wrap the gift up in a toilet paper roll!!! We have so much fun with this; stockings are one of our favorite parts. Ahhh, I love a good stocking.
We typically don’t open our gifts until December 26 in the evenings. Christmas, we just enjoy watching our kids open gifts from Santa in the morning. I make a big breakfast and we always, ALWAYS sing Happy Birthday to baby Jesus before we eat. I watch “White Christmas” in the afternoon, and then our parents come over for Christmas dinner.
When they all leave, we exchange gifts with the kids from “us,” and we all exchange them with each other. They get excited to give their gifts, and I think this is one of the coolest traditions we have started with our kids. I love how excited Tyler and Kenzy get to give gifts. You can never teach them too young about the gift of giving. They get so excited for Christmas night. It’s so sweet.
Remember that God gave us the greatest gift of all! Jesus was born in a manger on Christmas so that he could sacrifice his life for us. It’s the best gift the world will EVER receive. Whatever your plans are for Christmas, I hope you have a wonderful time and enjoy the traditions you and your family have! Make it last. Enjoy the special moments. Merry Christmas!
Pie using Dream Whip? You’re welcome.
My mother-in-law, Marlene McElroy Rook, spoils me with this decadent pie!
(Dream Whip box typically found with jello and mousse mixes in grocery stores.)
Coconut Dream Pie
• 2 envelopes of Dream Whip (whipped topping mix)
• 2 3/4 cups cold milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 packages (4 serving size) of JELL-O brand vanilla or coconut cream flavor instant pudding
• 1 1/3 cups coconut
• 1 baked 9-inch pie crust shell, cooled
Prepare whipped topping with 1 cup of milk and the vanilla as directed on the package using a large mixing bowl. Add the remaining 1 3/4 cups of milk and the pie filling mix.
Blend; then beat at high speed for 2 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally. Stir in coconut. Spoon into pie shell.
Chill for at least 4 hours. Garnish with cool whip if desired.
Note: Make sure your bowl and beaters are nice and cold when you make this recipe.
Place bowl and beaters in the freezer to chill before starting.
