A Yule Log (ha!)

For me, what makes the Winter Holiday Season so special is sharing time, memories, and traditions with loved ones. This year my family had to regroup after several recent losses of people near and dear to us. And as Christmas crept closer, we found ourselves putting our heads together to figure out ways to keep the spirit alive. In the end, some rituals stayed completely the same, a few got tweaked to make them better fit the new scheme of things, and one or two might have been quietly scrapped, in the interest of preserving the Elves' jolly outlook...and sanity.

First, Christmas Eve at Casa WestEnders. When the boys were younger, Husband and I began permitting them to open one gift on December 24th, to help them contain their anticipation...and let's face it, to distract them with a new plaything for the day. This plan obviously needed to be maintained, since they both began counting down several days before, and reminding us (you know, as Aging Parents who might suddenly forget these important agenda items) of its impending arrival. And by that, I mean down to the exact TIME they wished to rip open a package. Afterwards, Derek requested a screening of the Muppet Christmas Special...and the Year Without a Santa Clause...and Rudolph. I think he just wanted to bundle himself in a blanket and huddle on the couch for a few hours, but I can easily see this becoming a new annual habit. Finally, just like every year, we head to church to hear the story of Jesus' birth and sing favorite carols.

Then there's Christmas Day. My precious sons again had set a strict wakeup-and-unwrap schedule (a perfectly reasonable, agreeable 8:30, allowing me ample time to sneak down to the kitchen and brew coffffeeee beforehand, so I could be merry and bright, rather than...grinchy). Next, as always we piled into the car, making the trek to my Dad's to celebrate with the extended clan. Under the heading of "Some Things Never Change", we still require all the kids (ages 12, 10, 9, 8, and 5) to sit at the top of the stairs for a photo before we turn them loose on the loot. Oh, and before they have at it, everyone must hang their "Special Ornament" (the one engraved with their name) on the tree. We take a moment to remember Mom, Tracey, Aunt Renie, and even longtime-family-dog Goofy when adding theirs as well. Then the children are free to rifle their stockings, uncovering their aunt's sweet scores from the Dollar Store...whoops, I mean Santa's Swag, of course (wink). After that...it's just cousin commotion for a while as paper flies and squeals ring out and treasures are held up and admired. 

At last, when all that hard work is finished...it's time to eat. Now, here's one spot where my sister and I conspired to trash tradition...I mean "uncomplicate our lives"...um, "create a special new custom". You see, my mom (bless her patient heart) used to stand for hours cooking breakfast for all 12 of us. She presided over the pancakes and slung the sausages, batch by batch, until everyone had their fill (and with Derek, that could take...a while...) Instead, Sis had the brilliant brainstorm to concoct an ooey-gooey-yummy French Toast Casserole. (a la Paula Deen, y'all--but with a modified, non-artery-clogging amount of butter and eggs!) And I had an epiphany of my own a few days beforehand, and was inspired to whip up a sort of Southwestern Veggie-and-Egg dish to bring along. Voila! (Which in this case can be loosely translated as: "everyone sits and eats at the same time"...or something like that...)

And for the grand finale...we joined hands around the giant Christmas tree and sang "Da hoo dorais fa hoo dores, Welcome Christmas Christmas day" just like the Whos...no, that's not it! Rather, with bellies full of brunch deliciousness, and hearts full of warm family bonding, we bid a fond farewell to Christmas 2012. To plagarize--I mean "quote"-- another beloved fictional character, "God bless us, every one!"