Christmas

How do i even start a page on Christmas, how do i convey the sheer joy wonderment and excitement i feel of the up coming season.  I love the music playing in the house as we bake, my favorite CD being Bing Crosby & David Bowie, i just love the rich tones of their voices blending together bringing the ageless Christmas songs to life,
Then there is the decorating.............. at no other time of year do i get to splash my favorite color red around the house, we have red and white plaid pillows with a matching red and white plaid blanket combined with various other Christmas themed pillows, several varieties of wall hangings with red incorporated in them and of course our  giant wreath that hangs on the dining room wall that i each year usually with candy canes and various other charming trinkets.
 Then there is the snowman collection that i haven't even counted for years, but there are dozens dressed in reds greens golds, lady snowmen, gentlemen snowmen, baby snowmen, families. some are even dressed in fir, they are made from every thing ....cotton, wood, resin, glass. felt and wool most are gifts that i received for my birthdays or Christmas from loved ones so each year, when i gently unwrap them i tend remember the loved one whom gave it to me .
Christmas cookie baking oh my, we start baking right after thanksgiving making dozens of cookies Santa's whiskers, Russian tea cakes, chocolate crinkles, peanut butter, sugar cookies, thumb prints with Hershey kisses, date pinwheels, shortbread, choc,late covered pretzels, chocolate dipped pretzel sticks,  chocolate dipped peanut butter cookies, peanut clusters and so on , i think you have the idea lol.  this is a tradition that was started shortly after I was married for the first time, as it wasn't something i grew up doing,  it was Kevin's grandma " Gramie" who got me started with the Christmas cookies.
Some of my best memories of Christmas baking, is of time i spent with Gramie at her kitchen table with coffee and her home made cookies.  I think the only thing that my dad made was popcorn balls with nuts (which to this day is one of my favorite things in the world) and fudge and my mom made the pies my favorite being mincemeat pie (YUM).
Then there is the Christmas tree, there is nothing like going out and cutting your own tree down bringing it home and setting it up........ Christmas music playing  a plate of cookies to snack on with hot buttered rum coffee , the smell of a fresh cut fir tree is amazing and i am always sad to see it go on January 1st.
Decorating the tree is such a joy, I loved it as a child just as I do now. I still remember when we had real lead tinsel which hung down perfectly straight and glistened with the reflections of the Christmas lights the new tinsel is awful and i don't use it, Now I am not one of those perfectionist decorators i really like more of a Victorian vibe,  the more the better all types of decorations and stuffed creatures and lights oh how i love tons of lights half white and half colored mixed together.................. the reflection on the ornaments is amazing.
One of my favorite things is stuffing stockings for my children and love ones, I find Little treasures all year long and put them aside to wrap and stuff in the stocking on Christmas eve. The first time i can remember getting a stocking I was around 7 years old it had a little red elf peeking out of the top of the stocking looking down at me when i awoke in the morning, down below the elf were all kinds of little treasures a cupie doll, chocolates and various little trinkets.
 I love giving gifts homemade or bought never been comfortable receiving gifts find it very stressful to unwrap gifts in front of people. I am so looking forward to watching Tink unwrap gifts this year the joy on her face the excitement that we will hear in her voice as she gets her stocking, that will be my favorite thing.



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