Christmas Recap

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!  

I am so sad to see it over.  It really is my favorite time of year.  

I love the build up, excitement and anticipation.  Watching Home Alone & the Santa Clause endlessly in all their versions and sequels, baking cookies and keeping the fireplace roaring.

It is my most domestic season for sure.

We spent Christmas Eve at my parent's new house.  Talk about home for the holidays...

 They moved in officially the end of the summer, but I can't get over how cozy it is and how much it reminds me of their last place.   My Mom decorates like a madwoman for the holidays and I just love it!  My father had been working like crazy too, renovating their bedroom and bath, building and fixing whatever my Mom dreams up.  Their entire place was like a wonderland. I need to take better pictures with a real camera before they take their decorations down.

My favorite room- 

(please excuse Instagram filters on some of my pictures)

She had decorations everywhere. 

The kids loved it1

Even their bedroom was decked out:

BTW, they finished pulling this room together. 

Here is a much better after of the floors and room:

 We recently hung grasscloth in their dining room as an anniversary present.

 I really makes it so much warmer.

For dinner we have a big family tradition.  

We are part Czechoslovakian, 

so every Christmas Eve we do a meatless dinner consisting of three different soups 

followed by pirogies 

(think ravioli, but replace insides with mashed potato & cheese and then sauté with onions 

and top with sour cream- SO good and SO fattening!)

Anyone else out there do this?

 This year I made the pirogies.

Definitely need to make more, great winter meal and actually really easy to make.

Let me know if anyone wants the old school recipe.

After we all were stuffed, the kids passed out in front of the tree.  

We carried them to the car and tucked them in at home.  

Visions of sugar plums:

(The night before it was a similar scene, 

except visions of hammers and demo smashed through their heads.

They were exhausted from all the work they did!):

Santa came!

 Presents were had:

Pure chaos amongst more chaos:

 Big boys and their toys:

and we managed to pull off a Christmas dinner for 12 in our demolished house 

with a vintage oven that wanted to quit really badly.

A serious miracle!  

I am so thankful to have been able to spend this holiday with so many friends and family and have another year of memories.  I am off now to sadly take down a good deal of my decorations to make room for more demo.

(The electrician is here as I write this rewiring.)

Be back shortly with some inspiration!