Christmas Eve

Grandad tried to direct the chaos, but it was a bit like herding cats.

After the set-up was done, my kids enjoyed  wheelbarrow ride.  Poor cousin Owen was inside nursing a wicked goose egg he got when he slipped on the ice.

We carried on Aunt Mel’s tradition of decorating sugar cookies.   She provided the cookies and frosting, and I provided some of the decorating sprinkles, doodads and decorating elves.

Some of us are food artists…

Others of us may lack the artist’s touch, but still had a sugary sweet time.

Later, we went back out to light the luminares.  The street looks great at night!

After the lighting, there was a 15 minute stretch where the kids ran crazy in the yard, trying to both tackle and evade Uncle Bear.

A good time was had by all.

Soon, it was time to eat!  We had a great feast, that everyone contributed too.  MIL Pat did a great job putting it all together.  The menu included:  Honeybaked Ham, scalloped potatoes, PBC salad, green beans, jello salad, and crescent rolls.  Plus trifle and all kinds of goodies for dessert.

Before dinner, dad read the history of the luminares on his street.

We had a kids table, which Grandad thought we’d want close to the main table.  In hindsight, it would have been better to stick them in the kitchen.

Christmas Eve would not be complete without Aunt Melissa playing some carols on the piano for us.

Some sang, and some tackled…

And some performed interpretive dances.

Wendy got to open one gift early, a lovely Christmas dress.

We intended to go to a 7pm Christmas eve service (hence the dress present), but had such a good time with family, we never made it out.   Being with family was a great way to spend Christmas eve.