Really Cookin'

Five Favorite Christmas Traditions

1. Dad's Egg Nog- We certainly have no "nog" in the Dean home, but my dad does the BEST version of this classic holiday drink. He puts a premade egg nog in the blender with Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla and tops it with a dash of nutmeg. Creamy heaven!
2. Christmas Eve- My church has the most amazing Candlelight Service. It is so special to see all of the old friends that have returned home to visit family. My favorite part is a new edition to the service in the last couple of years. As the crowd is singing Silent Night to end the service, it starts to snow!!! Really! Well, Texas snow at least...
3. Papa's Menagerie- My dad's father was a Christmas NUT! He used to wake us up at 5 o'clock in the morning! He also collected all types of moving Christmas toys. Some sing, some dance and others just do cool toy things, but he had them all out for us to play with. Since my grandfather's passing, my dad does it. We add something to it every year and it so special to see Caroline playing with the same toys I played with.
4. Cooking with Mom- My mom always made a huge deal about Christmas cooking. We would pour over recipes for weeks in advance and pick the ones we liked best. They never came out like the picture, but we made a lifetime of memories. Again, this is something I have enjoyed doing with my daughter now!
5. Our Movies- On Christmas Eve (or whatever night closest to that we can all get together- I know you all undertsand!) we eat tamales and watch It's a Wonderful Life and White Christmas. We sing the songs and quote the lines. It is such a good thing that no one but immediate family is there. We are probably all so annoying. Occasionally i catch Chris looking at us funny, but he will have to get used to it. Wait- it is our 9th Christmas together, maybe he will always look at us funnny! These are honestly my favorite Christmas moments.