CHRISTMAS!!!!

Good morning! I hope everyone had a great Christmas and that Santa was good to you! I had a really great Christmas weekend, and it’s really great that today is yet another day off to rest and relax.

On Friday, Tommy took the day off so that we could go to the city see the tree in Rockefeller Center and check out all the gorgeous Christmas decorations everywhere. Before we headed out, we stopped for sushi for lunch. I got a roll called the Christmas Tree, which I thought was very fitting since we were going to see the tree.

I love Manhattan during Christmas. Even though I basically go into the city for school everyday, it’s nice to take a day to take it all in an appreciate the decorations. It was also great to see how excited Munchkin got to see the tree. He kept pointing to the top and yelling star, which I thought was the cutest thing ever.

In the evening, we headed out to Long Island to exchange gifts with Tommy’s cousins. I brought them my Cranberry Bliss Bars and they were a huge hit. I brought the whole pan, cut into triangles, and they were gone within minutes.

Saturday was Christmas Eve, and following Polish tradition, we had our big Christmas celebration in the evening. We started out with Wigilia, which is a traditional meal without any meat. I can honestly say, this is some of the best food we eat all year – pierogi, all kinds of fish, salads and red borsch with mushroom croquets. My stomach is rumbling just at the thought of it. Of course I was too hungry to stop and take a picture of our feast, but I did find one from two years ago.

After we finish eating, and tradition says you have to try at least one bite of the 12 dishes served, we open our gifts. And of course, no Christmas Eve is complete without a visit from Santa. Munchkin’s god father surprised us all when he showed up dressed up as Santa, complete with Jingle Bells.

Munchkin and I must’ve been very good this year because we both got spoiled rotten. I got some really fun stuff, none of which I was expecting. Tommy got me a Pandora bracelet and an iPad case. He got me two charms, an A for Alex and a heart with a key. I’m so in love with it. I got some fun foodie gifts from my cousin Patricia – a pizza stone, day planner and recipe calendar. My goal is to make each of the recipes in it during that month. I got a huuge Hello Kitty bath set from Munchkin’s godfather and a Michael Kors wallet that I’ve been drooling over for months from my parents.

After all the presents and excitement, we headed out to church for Midnight Mass. We decided to go to my cousin’s church because I had to drop her off at home after the mass, and to be honest, we were both disappointed by the midnight mass there. Midnight Mass is my favorite mass of the whole year and it’s something we both look forward to every year. We’ve gone every year since she moved here, but we always went to my church. There’s something a bit magical about a packed church (literally with people crowded up and down the aisles spilling out onto the street) singing that first Christmas carol that always starts the mass. We decided we’ll be sticking to my church for midnight mass from now on.

On Sunday, Munchkin woke up ready to get back to his new toys.

He had a lot of time to play before we headed out to my aunt’s for Christmas dinner. It was nice to spend time with my cousins and reminisce about our youngen days because, you know, we’re so old now.

I can’t believe Christmas is over, but I am so grateful for having an amazing Christmas weekend filled with friends and family.

How did you spend the holiday weekend?