Tis the Season (Part 5...the FINALE!)

In my most recent years, the Christmas season has been quite overwhelming. Once Rick & I were blessed with little ones, our holiday events seemed to have doubled! I am honored to participate in many wonderful groups and organizations throughout the year and they tend to all have a holiday party of some sort. Add to that my amazing family and their desire to have 4 separate gatherings to celebrate the Lord's birth, and combine THAT with my own personal drive to attend new and exciting holiday events each year...it makes for a BUSY December! By the end of Christmas my sisters and I all call each other and say, "Don't take it personal if you don't hear from me for a few days...I need a break...from everything."

But this year was different. I went into it with a fresh mindset. I was mentally prepared to be overwhelmed, and in the beginning of the month I (literally) told myself, "Just take this month one event at a time. Don't look at the entire month as a whole." And sure enough, that's what I did. I know I didn't do anything less than what I have done in the past, and in fact, we added a few new traditions, and yet, I am not overwhelmed in the least! :0)

Christmas Eve is always spent with my family. In prior years my mom has hosted this dinner, but my Dad & Step-mom have been back from PA for over a year now, and they had asked to do the honors. We went to church beforehand, and as always, our Pastor never disappoints. It was an incredible, emotional, heartfelt message. Then we were off to my dad's!

My girlfriend lent me 3 dresses to wear over the last couple of weeks (one of which I wore to the Nutcracker), and they were all so beautiful. However, there was one dress in particular that I LOVED the most! It was a red velvety dress. 2 of the dresses looked GREAT on me (I'm just reporting the facts people, lol) but the red velvety dress!?...not so much! :0( I had eaten a cheeseburger before I tried the dress on...my stomach was quite bloated and I looked about 7 months pregnant in that dress! But I had my mind set on that dress for Christmas Eve! I've been working hard ever since to be able to wear it. I didn't try the dress on again until Friday night, and sure enough, it FIT!!! I mean, I could still/always lose a few more pounds, but it did look nice. :0) So the red velvety dress won the race...and I even rocked these 5 inch gold platform shoes with it. HAHAHA!

I had eaten fairly little all day in preparation for the feast that I would be enjoying that evening, and as I suspected, after a few crab stuffed mushrooms, some "Party Rysers" (a Pennsylvania Horse devours), Honey Baked Ham, scalloped potatoes, etc., I looked like this...



And THAT was before dessert, LOL! I made the most amazingly delicious dessert...Monkey Bread..from scratch!



There was also a pecan pie, an apple pie, my Grandma's beloved "Cherry Crunch", my sister's shady cookies (shout out to Anna!), and tons of other treats. Here was Jenni's plate of desserts...



We had a wonderful evening socializing, eating (of course!), and opening presents. My nephew Trevor read the Christmas story from the Bible perfectly, and MY favorite memory of this entire month-long celebration, was when my Wyatt sung and performed 4 Christmas Carols on the piano for the entire family on Christmas Eve. I have never been so proud! :0) Here are some of my favorite pictures from that night...







My "dear" caught in the headlights...



My nephews loved doing self-portraits with their favorite Auntie...





I suppose after Jenni turns 30 we will be expected to act mature, but until then...





Christmas Day was a Brumbaugh-only event. :0) The kiddos woke us up at 6am, I popped my coffee cake in the oven, and while it was baking, we opened presents. The kids were adorable with all of their gifts, and Rick & I were surprised with the gifts we had purchased for each other. :0) We just had a wonderful low-key day, complete with a 3 hour nap enjoyed by all, great eats, watching of "The Christmas Story", and singing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus.

As mentioned, I made a scrumptious coffee cake for breakfast...



And for dinner, Rick requested a Thanksgiving Dinner Re-do (some of his favorite items were not at our Thanksgiving table this year...a.k.a. Green Bean Casserole & Croissants.) I made a "Bacon and Herb Roasted Turkey Breast", stuffing, traditional mashed potatoes, gravy, and of course...green bean casserole & croissants...



Leftovers were delish!...