Christmas Joy Bloghop

This blog hop is brought to you by Liz's Random Ponderings. Let's see, what brings me joy at Christmas?

1. Getting the tree.

When I was a kid, we had a fake tree, but I loved it anyway. My husband, on the other hand, would traipse out to the woods with his family, cut down an actual tree, and chop off the top of it to drag back. These days, we compromise, traipsing about the local nursery, until we find the perfect Frasier Fir. (Our first time around, I insisted on a Blue Spruce, which is pretty, but its needles are deadly sharp.) 

Once home, our kid dance around, fighting over who gets to cut off the plastic mesh that holds the branches together, who gets to hang the first ornament, who gets to hang the fanciest ornament, and where the ornaments that they made get to hang. While they argue, I sneak around, rearranging the ornaments to my liking until they catch me. Then they holler to put everything back and just who do I think I am, the Queen of England? (No, but I am the Queen of Ornaments, and there will be an even distribution of color, shape, and sizes so help me!)

I have an image, but Blogger is being Grinchy this morning.

2. Snow.

Up here in Rochester, NY, we are almost guaranteed to have a white Christmas. No so this year. Right now it's sixty degrees and there's not a flake in sight (except me). There is something exquisitely wonderful about being the last person awake, turning off the Christmas tree lights, going to the window, and watching the snow silently drift down in the light of the street lamp before going to bed. 

3. Going home.

We made the mistake of staying put for our daughter's first Christmas. After opening up her gifts, our baby fell into a deep sleep and my husband and I just sat around thinking, "Hmm. This is boring." No more of that! From then on, we traveled to see my parents, his parents, and all our siblings. I love being in my mother's house, eating all the yummy things she makes, and being overwhelmed by all the presents she gets for my family. It makes me feel like a kid again. 

Merry Christmas to each and every one of you!