Our Christmas Traditions

I was going to write this tomorrow but as I sit here and think of the million things I have to do I figured I would write it now. But before I write about my Christmas Traditions, let me tell you about the million things I have to do tomorrow.

1. Wash all the blankets in the house, it is about 6 of them. Not normally a big deal cause we put them in the Big Boy washers but well our base sucks and we only have 1 so it takes that much longer.
2. Go to the commissary and get food for me and for the people that are going to be staying at my house to watch my puppies while Tim and I go to Lakenheath for a few days to visit friends.
3. Go to Tesco (another supermarket) cause our commissary isn't one of the smallest and the produce sucks and it is WAY better at Tesco.
4. Go to the bank, cash one check, and then split another into 2 separate accounts so that we have our Xmas money to spend.
5. Go to post office and check mail to see if there is one last chance that any late coming packages will get here in time for Xmas, if not, we won't get mail till next Monday.

While this may not seem like a lot, I have to get most of it done before 4 p.m. because that is when everything closes, go figure huh? Oh yeah and I get out of work at 2:30. Needless to say I might be getting out of work early in order to complete all tasks above. Okay, now on to my Christmas traditions.

Growing up (I notice when I talk about the past, I always start with growing up) we didn't really have many Christmas traditions. My mom is a nurse and at the time was working at the hospital and it was hit or miss when it came what time she worked for Xmas. Sometimes we got lucky in that she was home at least one of the 2 days in order to spend some time with us. But we never had a routine that we followed from year to year. There were some years we got our tree really early, some years we got it the week before Christmas. There were a few years that we decorated the tree as a family and then other years I did it alone while my father sat in his chair watching TV telling me all the stories of the ornaments. Some years we wen to midnight mass, other years we went to Christmas Eve mass, then there were the years we didn't go at all. As we got older things changed as well. We didn't always wait till Christmas morning to open presents, some years we did it on Christmas Eve. There was always a common theme in all the Christmas's past, we were all together at one point during the holiday season. Whether it was dad and I putting the tree up, my mom and I making dinner in the kitchen (mostly me watching I should say), my sister and I fighting over who's turn it was to pick out the tree that year (we usually alternated who picked the tree at the lot), or all of in our respected corners in the living room with our piles of open boxes, tissue paper, and torn wrapping paper. They were all special.

Since being married I have decided to do a few thing differently. I have decided that Christmas Eve is just for Tim and I (and whatever family is in town at the time). I made a really nice dinner and that varies from year to year. One year we had lobster tail (it was a little rubbery as we didn't really know how to cook it), another year we had prime rib, another year we had steaks,...the list goes on. But it is something that we don't normally have so it is kinda a treat to get it on Christmas Eve. This year we are having rack of lamb. First time making it for me so as long as I don't over cook it, we'll be okay. Then we sit down and watch A Christmas Story with Ralphie. Normally in the states they run a 24 hour marathon but they don't have that movie here in England so my MIL bought it for me on DVD so that I can enjoy it. This movie HAS to be first, not sure why but it isn't Christmas till you here "You'll shoot your eye out!" or "My brother looked like a tick ready to pop." I could quote all day but I'm on a schedule here.
(Oh yeah, I have the leg lamp too...thanks Dad!)
After A Christmas Story we watch National Lampoo's Christmas Vacation. Nothing beats the squirrel scene. I pee myself a little each year when I watch it. Its good times. The last movie varies on the mood. We only have 2 other to pick from, last year it was Elf, but I also have Polar Express. I love Tom Hanks but I'm also (as you can see from the previous post) a HUGE Will Ferrell fan. Can't get enough of that man. Then normally we call Tim's grandmother as everyone is normally at her house at this time and we get passed around the room answering the same questions each year. How's the weather? When are you coming home? What are you doing tomorrow? What did you have for dinner? How's work? The normal questions. Then we go to bed.

Christmas morning, we make coffee. We wait till we both have a cup of coffee and then head to living room to open our presents. Since there is only 2 of us, this takes about 5 minutes. We hum and ha about what we got and then I go into the kitchen and make breakfast of some sort. It has to have bacon though cause we don't eat bacon on a regular basis and if we do it is turkey bacon. This year we are having High Rise Apple Pancake. A favorite of mine growing up. My mom always made a good one so we are going to have that. Only one pan to clean so I'm all about that. Well really 2, I have to cook the bacon. After breakfast we play with our stuff, check email, do whatever, go back to bed sometimes, watch a movie and wait for about 12-1 o'clock to call home to see how everyone liked their presents.

In the afternoon sometime we go to someone else's house and eat Christmas dinner cause at this point I'm tired of cooking. I like doing this because I usually just have to bring something easy to make, like a pie or something. Then we hang out with them and play games and go home at some point in evening or wee hours of the morning.

I think my traditions are simple and I think if try and have to many traditions you lose yourself in trying to keep up with all of these traditions. So pick 2 and do just those and enjoy the season and the people you get to spend it with.