Returning to the Real World

I have been delaying this post for a few days now. I hate to admit that Christmas is over. The end of Christmas means the end of long days filled with family and laughter, the giddiness of gift giving is gone…Now we have a fridge filled with left overs, random scraps of wrapping paper, and 8 am chocolate cravings. Peanut butter ball anyone?

Santa was feeling a bit shy…

I hope that everyone had a fabulous holiday and has managed to avoid any sickness that has been going around! My week has been wonderful. As I get older, I seem to appreciate this season more and more. Now for a little recapping…

I started out my Christmas vacation (perks of being a teacher!) last Friday evening by going caroling with the girls’ basketball team that I am helping to coach. I am not exactly the singing in public type, so this was a challenge for me! Thankfully we had lyrics, and it turned out to be a great night-getting a peanut butter ball at one of our stops helped! Those things are so addictive!

Peanut Butter Perfection

I spent the weekend making peanut butter balls (healthified of course!) with this awesome recipe, peppermint bark, and attending an Ugly Christmas Sweater party. Except I wore a turtleneck with tiny Christmas trees on it. So maybe it wasn’t very ugly, but I haven’t worn a turtleneck since first grade-that counts for something right?! Even though everyone is wearing an awful sweater, I still feel embarrassed-am I alone in this? There were some yummy treats and lots of Taboo playing-I love this game!

Party Time!

Christmas Eve is also my Mom’s birthday. I was up early to pack my things (because waking up at home on Christmas morning is a must!), and head to my parents’ house to help make my Mom’s birthday breakfast. I tend to get more excited for other people’s birthdays than my own, plus my brother was coming home from college, so it was a very good day! We hung out at the house for a bit before going out for dinner at a local Italian restaurant that we all love. We had the restaurant almost to ourselves, so it was a very nice dinner! Then it was home again for tiramisu and birthday presents!

Happy Christmas!

Christmas morning was nothing short of spectacular. We had our traditional breakfast of French Toast Brulee and then spent a few hours opening our gifts. As my brother and I have gotten older, we like to stretch out this part of the day for as long as possible! Santa was super good to me! But more on that later…

Pecan Pie and Christmas Dinner

After our gifts were opened, my Mom and I got to work in the kitchen. I had Melissa’s fruit salad to make (just about the healthiest thing that I ate all week), as well as a pumpkin roll!

The rest of the day was spent eating, going for a long walk, and watching movies. And trying to hold on to the day for as long as possible!

What was your favorite part of this week?