Good morning every one! I hope you’ve enjoyed your holiday celebrations with family and friends – and if you haven’t had a chance to celebrate yet, I hope you’ve got some fun things planned!
This time of year is so hectic that we often lose sight of the things that are most important to us. My hope in this edition of the Blog Carnival you’re able to take some time to reflect on what’s important to you, and what traditions you treasure with your friends and family. For me, that means spending Christmas Eve with my extended family and Christmas Day with both sets of parents. Traditionally, we would gather at my Grandparents’ house for Christmas Eve festivities – aunts, uncles, and cousins – the whole shebang! We eat, drink, and be merry…we sing carols, laugh, and enjoy each others’ company. Eventually the kids – and frankly, the adults too – grow restless and wanted at the slew of beautifully wrapped gifts piled around the tree.
We know, however, we can’t open anything until we carry Baby Jesus to the manger scene and either sing ‘Away in a Manger’ or read Luke 2:8-14. Cheesy as it may seem, this is Grandma’s favorite part of the evening; she beams with delight as the smallest grandkids makes their way from the kitchen to the manger, the first carrying a small plate with a Hostess cupcake with a birthday candle.
Once this has taken place, the gifts are fair game…we’ve tried having a designated Santa to pass out the gift, but the kids aren’t down with that! It takes too long and there are too many to appease! This is some times my favorite time to grab the camera and spy on the guests – I’ve gotten the best pictures from watching for reactions as gifts are opened. Faces glow with delight, and the kids’ eyes are wide with glee.
As for New Year’s celebrations – we don’t do much on New Year’s Eve. We’re big hockey fans, so we attend the Komet’s game that night (the local team in the CHL). Some one in the family usually has a small gathering of friends and family, so we head that direction after the game – some times fancy dress, some times casual…I like to glam it up a little bit, truth be told 
One of my favorite New Year’s traditions is getting together with some of my favorite family members on New Year’s Day to celebrate my birthday! If we’re not with them at midnight, my family and friends call and text to wish me a happy birthday…I try my best to stay awake, but sleep prevails more often than not! Later in the day we all meet up for lunch and some type of fun activity – ice skating, bowling, shopping, etc. It’s my favorite way to spend my birthday!
My sincere wish for you all is a safe and happy holiday season – may 2012 be a prosperous year for us all, and may you all be blessed with good health and friendship.
