The last week and a half has been a whirlwind of cooking with my mom, sister, and my two sister-in-laws.  We have cooked a truly mind numbing amount of sweet treats as the more than 300 pounds of butter we’ve used can attest.

I have just a few more days of crazy hard work and then we’ll be done and I’ll have time to really soak in the spirit of the Holidays and maybe even sleep in a day or two.  After getting up every morning at 4 am even 7 would be very nice.

Every year the silver lining of being so busy in December is the time I get to spend with my mom and my dearest sister and sister-in-laws.  It is a time that forges the bonds of our relationships deeper and richer.  We laugh together (and at each other) often and we support each other in amazing ways.

The other day my newlywed brother amused us all by calling his wife to see if she wanted to watch a Christmas movie with him that night…  he was thinking maybe “Die Hard” would be awesome.  She told him that she might be a foreigner but she was definitely not stupid. And BTY, Josh, they have Bruce Willis movies even in South Africa.

The other silver lining of working so hard in December is that I am forced to both focus and simplify our Christmas traditions…  Simple things like snuggling on the sofa with my kids while we listen to my husband read a Christmas book after a long day takes on more meaning and importance.

Every year I rely on creating a Christmas Calender at the beginning of December to make sure we don’t miss out on our favorite traditions like decorating Gingerbread houses or going to the Nativity.

As I drove home this evening, tired and quiet, I thought about traditions and what they have come to mean to me.  Traditions are what connect me to my past and give meaning to my present.  Our traditions often make me focus on simple things.

Here are a few Holiday traditions that I love:

Visiting the Living Nativity each year in Alpine, Utah

Making Gingerbread Houses

Reading a new Christmas book every night… some amusing like “How Murray Saved Christmas” and others tender and sweet like “The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree” or “Christmas Day in the Morning”

Watching the old classic “How the Grinch Saved Christmas” and eating peppermint popcorn

Visiting the honest to goodness real Santa Claus at Cabela’s

Going Owling in our snowshoes after dark

Ice skating downtown and going to get French Onion soup at Gourmandie afterward

Visiting the lights at Temple Square in Downtown Salt Lake City

This year, over the Christmas break, my girls and I are going to stitch our heart and mitten ornaments for our “Good Deed” ornaments.  We’ve designed our pattern and have our wool…  we can hardly wait for some quiet days to stitch.

Game Night between Christmas and New Years with friends and family

Seeing the reindeer and lights at Thanksgiving Point

I’d love to hear any of your favorite traditions too.

And just for fun, you can check out my interview with Melissa at the Polkadot Chair…  I know you’re just dying to know what band I loved in Junior High ; )!  But seriously, Melissa and her blog are wonderful, so be sure to drop by.

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