What i love about this time of year!

This last weekend i had my annual holiday baking session with my cousins at Kami's house. I love this because it gives us a little of home. I remember when i was pretty little at Aunty Kays house making all sorts of goodies. we are in fact a very gooodie family. While we were making things the question came up of what is the holiday treat that you associate with christmas. So i thought i would write a list of some of my loves of the season.

1. My holiday treat is Fudge. It just says christmas to me. Everyone in my family makes fudge. My mom, aunt and grandma's are my favorite. My grandma even makes some peanutbutter fudge that i like and i HATE peanut butter.

2. Snow & christmas lights- I love how lights glitter off of the snow. And my favorite is right after it has snowed a bunch and then everything is just calm no one is out and its just calm an quite. It makes me think about the night that christ was born and is just very peaceful.

3. Manheim Steamroller Music-This is a tradition from my parents. When we were decorating for christmas we always had this on so now it is what i listen to all season. My favorties are carol of the bells and Stille Notche.

4. Claymation Holiday Cartoons- I actually like to watch these on thanksgiving night. Which stems back from when i was rather young and they used to show them on tv then. Kurtis got me the box set for christmas the first year we were married. Now i'm teaching kyler to love them. My favorite is actually Santa Claus is Coming to town and then of course Rudolf the red Nosed Reindeer.

5. The lights from the chirstmas tree. I love the light that a tree gives its possibly my favorite thing inside. combine it with the music and i could just sit and read a book next to the tree all night.

6. shopping for everyone- I actaully love shopping for everyone. I always try to be done by thanksgiving now as we are usually either going up for thanksgiving and thats a lot cheaper than shipping or just because i prefer to spend the holiday season relaxed with the presents under the tree when i put it up. But i love getting my list all ready and crossing things off of it. And just finding that present that with make someone happy or their eyes light up.

7. Decorating- I don't have a ton of decorations but my entire house is green ( the lady we bought it from really really liked green.) so christmas is very nice and easy to decorate for. this year i've kinda done a mountain cabin christmas. Lots of pine and dark colors. hopefully i can continue to add to my decore through the years.

8. Family- It just feels like we are more in contact with family that we usually aren't as in contact with during this time of year. This christmas is a little harder for me because its our second in a row away from my family. We did it this way becuase we want to be on track with everyone else. All my cousins go up ever other year so we wanted to be ontrack with them. I love christmas at home but kurtis' family does a really good christmas too. I wish i could combine christmas eve games here with grandma's birthday their and then have christmas day there. But i love it both ways.

9. Fuzzy PJ's on Kyler- something about his fuzzy pjs makes me think of christmas morning.

10. Stalkings by the fire when we looked at our house i loved that it had a fireplace with a mantle. So i acutally do get to hang my stalkings by the fireplace. I also can't wait till i get our new stalkings. My mom sent us some this year that are just the red and white ones but she had my aunt embroider our names on them. But i'm holding out for the knitted ones i grew up with. a lady acutally makes them and they each have your name on them and a picture of something example mine is a snow man, i'm going to get kyler a puppy with a christmas hat on and i'm not sure what for kurtis yet maybe a santa or a rocking horse. Anyway my aunt has these foreveryone in her family and extended and their mantle is getting pretty full. But i love these stalkings so mom and i are working on getting each of our houses a set for us. My mom already has them for our immediate family but not kurtis or kyler yet.

11. my christmas skirt- My grandma made me a christmas tree skirt last year for christmas which i love. I was actually trying to find one last year and figured i'd wait till after christmas to see what i could find. And then i got this one and absolutly love it. my moms was made by my grandma too so it reminds me of home. Plus its is now offically a family heirloom.