"The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear"

I've seen this around and loved reading about other's traditions. I hope you enjoy.

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate? Hot chocolate and egg nog. My cousin always sends my family a package each year and he includes the best hot chocolate from his store. We try to make it last all year. Yum. I like it with whipped cream.
I like egg nog too, but I usually have to add some milk to it because it's pretty thick to drink by itself.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Santa usually wraps presents but it's different wrapping paper obviously than the rest of the presents. The rest of the presents are from your parents. Santa also fills the stockings with unwrapped presents.

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? Growing up we sometimes had colored but usually they were white. White lights are so beautiful on the tree when all the other lights are off. This year Jesse and I have blue and white lights on our tree (Go UK!) and colored lights around our windows.

4. Do you hang mistletoe? We've talked about it, but don't have any yet. (Mistletoe fact I never knew from my horticulturist husband: it's a parasitic plant that is spread by bird poop and grows on the top of trees and has to be shot down with a gun! Did you know that?!)

5. When do you put your decorations up? Growing up we would get our tree the Saturday after Thanksgiving and usually decorate then, too. This year Jesse and I had to wait because we were out of town and got our (very first together!) Christmas tree on December 3rd.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish? Hmm, does pumpkie pie count?

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? I loved it when my sister and I would wake up before my parents and go downstairs (and see the tree all lit in the dark room) to open our stockings. We were allowed to open our stockings- we would usually take a few things out and then put them back till our parents woke up, but had to wait for our parents to open presents. Also, Ohio Village- see #16.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I don't really remember, but I still believe in Santa 100%.
Santa may not be a "fact," but he is "true."
He may not be a person, but he is millions of people who all work together to bring children beautiful Christmases.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? We wait until Christmas morning to open presents.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? This year we bought blue and white bulbs and tinsel string to decorate. I was just saying to Jesse the other day that we should have bought an ornament when we were on our honeymoon in Rome to have a tradition of ornaments from where we travel. We are going to start the tradition of buying each other an ornament each year to hang on our tree.
My great aunt also made my sister and I an ornament every year when we were growing up from the song the 12 days of Christmas. I'll have to see what happened to those since they're probably still at my parent's house.

11. Snow! Love it or dread it? LOVE! I wish there was snow NOW! I want and need a white Christmas. Jesse doesn't like snow so much because he has to be out working in it, so I try to scale back my love of it, cause I don't want him to be too cold. But, good thing we aren't staying in Kentucky because it's supposed to be raining and in the 40s! Christmas isn't Christmas without snow!

12. Can you ice skate? I've been a few times, but I can't really skate so well.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? The best memories don't really have anything to do with gifts, just the love that my family had for each other and the time that we spent together.

14. What’s the most important thing about the holidays for you? Family. I love spending time with them.

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Spritz cookies with maraschino cherries in the center, of course pumpkin pie, and caramel (or cinnamon) pecan rolls.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Growing up we would almost always pick a family in our ward that was less fortunate and buy things for them and then doorbell ditch on their porch or do the same thing with cookies.
We also went to Ohio Village which was a reconstructed 1800s village. We would decorate cookies, sing with the carolers, go around to the different shops, and feed the animals. It was magical since they only used candles and stayed true to the time period. I'm so glad I have those memories since the village is now gone. (Well, the actual village is still there but they've changed everything and it's not the same so we don't go anymore).
In the past few years we went to Slate Run which is similar to Ohio Village and participate in some old time Christmas traditions. (Their gingerbread men were the best!)

17. What tops your tree? Right now it's star that blinks white and blue to go with our UK themed tree. We might keep it or make/have a different one next year.

18. Which do you prefer: giving or receiving? Giving, especially watching the faces of people when they open their gift and knowing it will be something they will love. I don't do homemade gifts very often, but I think next year I might start.

19. Candy canes: yuck or yum? Yum. You can crunch them or munch them or suck on them or chew them up. I've only eaten one so far this year, but it was delicious. I should eat more because mint helps my stomach. I like sucking on the end to make it sharp and turning it into a little sword. We have them on our tree, but I kind of forget about eating them.

20. Favorite Christmas show? Home Alone, A Child's Christmas in Wales, The Santa Clause, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Elf, White Christmas, While You Were Sleeping (which I always watch every Christmas with my sister).

21. Saddest Christmas song? That Christmas Shoes song. Jesse and I heard it on the radio the other day and I cry every time I hear it so I plugged my ears so I wouldn't cry. He said it's one of his favorite songs even though it does make him cry. (I like the message behind the song, but it's just so sad!)

22. What is your favorite Christmas song? I love "I Wonder As I Wander", "Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella", "I'm dreaming of a White Christmas", and "Good King Wenceslas" and silly, I know, but I love the Chipmunks too! I could listen to them for long periods, but I usually only listen for a little bit cause I know Jesse doesn't really like them and can only stand them in short bursts.
Some songs like "Last Christmas I Gave You My Heart" can just go away. The radio plays that song toooo often and it drives me nuts.
I like good Christmas music.

23. Do you use an Advent calendar? We had one that we used growing up, but we don't have one this year. I should try making one for next year.

24. Do you go to church on Christmas? Not unless it's Sunday, and there's regular church, but on my mission we went one year with a family to their Church on Christmas Eve and it was beautiful to sing carols and see the church lit up with candles.

25. What were your Christmas morning rules as a kid? We weren't supposed to wake our parents up early, but we could open our stocking. Brenna and I would usually go downstairs and look in our stocking and eat some candy and sort though the gifts and then wait for our parents to wake up. If we felt they were taking too long, we would sneak up to their room and quietly wake them up so they would get up and we could open presents.

5 days till Christmas!!

My stomach hates me

This past weekend was a weekend of firsts:

Jesse and I got our first Christmas tree together and decorated it and hung lights on it and around the apartment! Of course it's real! We wouldn't have it any other way...it smells delicious! Oh, it makes me so happy.

Our Stake Conference was this past weekend.

Our first Stake Conference in a family ward.

Our first Stake Conference as a married couple.

And our first Stake Conference in our new Stake.

It was really good! The Saturday night session focused mainly on becoming better parents and better husbands and wives (which was definitely helpful since Jesse and I are new to this whole marriage thing). The Sunday session focused on strengthing our testimony of Christ, following church leaders, and strengthing families by doing what we need to be doing.

That night was the First Presidency Christmas devotional, which we ended up missing since I wasn't feeling too well. But I watched it on Monday at work...definitely worth a watch.

In our current ward there are two other couples that were in the Singles branch with us (one couple got married in March and the other in July of this year) so at least we have friends in our new ward already.

Still no callings (other than home teacher for Jesse). But I'm sure they'll come...

Happy Friday.

*(The post title had nothing to do with this blog.)