The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Like I said before I have really been looking forward to this Christmas. I love Christmas time. All the goodies, presents, decorations, lights, and family (even if it is just over Skype). I love all of the sights, songs and smells that go with Christmas. This year was even better because Mel is a little older and can enjoy it all even more.

Christmas goodies: I love the food you only get at Christmas time. Eggnog is one of our favorites. This year we decided to experiment with homemade eggnog. I must say it is really easy to make and very delicious. I am looking forward to making more next year and perfecting our own recipe.

Christmas dinner was another experiment. I have never made lamb before and the few times I have tried it I really didn't like it. But good ol' Costco made me want to try and make it. After enjoying a sample (or two) I decided to give it a go. It is by far the easiest protein I have ever made for dinner. All I did was season it and then stick it in the crock pot and not touch it for a few hours. That leg of lamb was falling apart delicious and I will probably opt to do it again next year.

Of course no Christmas would be complete without some cookies and candies. My favorite to make at Christmas is pumpkin fudge and nut clusters. We decided that it had been WAY too long since we have made gingersnaps, so we included them in our baking. Meric and Mel were in charge of making the cookies.

With her stool up to the counter Mel was very focused and intent on helping her daddy.

She was very curious and patient throughout the whole process. (Daddy was very patient too.)

Mel stood there from start to finish helping daddy with every step. She was very happy to enjoy the spoils of her hard work at the end too.

Christmas fun: Mel had a lot of fun with all the Christmas activities. My previous blog is all about the Christmas tree and decorating. This year we also pulled out Meric's childhood toy train.

Mel loves trains and was very excited to watch the train go round the track.

Christmas presents: Mel did a great job of not really messing too much with the tree.

Occasionally she would pull down an ornament but for the most part she left it alone and just enjoyed looking at it. On Christmas eve when we brought out all the presents that was a big temptation for her. She would shuffle right up to the edge of the presents and then stand there.

It was almost like she was saying "I'm not touching them."

On Christmas morning, when she could touch them, she had a ball unwrapping presents. Mel is a great kid to give present to because she gets so excited. Her gasps and "ooh cool" were so enjoyable.

She was very intent to get every scrap of wrapping paper off of the box before she would open them.

Mel enjoyed Christmas which made it so much more fun for us. The best thing really is having kids on Christmas! I can't wait until next year!

Jasper's favorite spot when presents aren't in the way

Oh Christmas Tree

When we moved into out house in July, I was very excited for Christmas.  Being in the trailer meant no room for a real tree or a lot of decorations. We always had a small tree with lights draped around it but no room for ornaments. I couldn't wait until we could pull out all of the Christmas decorations we hadn't used in years.

After a quick search Meric and I discovered a Christmas tree farm just down the road from us. We hopped in the truck and headed down the road. It wasn't too long before we saw the sign for the tree farm. It looked like a residential driveway with a private home. We followed the sign and saw that just behind the house was rows and rows of beautiful Christmas trees. The farm looks like a cute little family run business. The signs lead to a parking lot next to a ginormous snowman.

Of course we needed to get a picture with the ginormous snowman.

There was a small building that they used as a store. There was free hot chocolate and a variety of items for sale. They also were making homemade wreaths from bits of branches. There were free hay rides around the farm.

The tree farm grew 3 kinds of Cyprus trees and had fir trees trucked in from North Carolina. The fir trees were the type of trees that Meric and I were use to with the needles and branches. We decided to stroll through the rows of trees and check out something new. There were so many beautiful trees, all perfectly shaped.

Mel loved running through the rows of trees.

After looking through a few rows of trees we finally found the perfect one.

We had them cut it down for us (they also give you the option to do it yourself) and after shaking the loose needles off they wrap it for you and help you take it to your vehicle all as part of their service. They were very nice and the whole experience was fun. If we are still here next year we will visit them again.

We got the tree home and into position. The next day we got to work decorating. After draping the lights around the tree I pulled out all of our ornaments. It has been years since we have seen any of our ornaments.

It was fun pulling them out and reminiscing about how we came to get some of them. Mel loved the whole process. She kept saying "ooh pretty" over and over and over again. It was so much fun seeing the glee in her eyes.

Mel really didn't know what to think about the Nutcracker

I am so glad we are able to do a full size Christmas tree and all the decorations this year. Meric and I love being able to share in the holiday delight with Mel.