Christmas in the San Antone

Choc. Chip Cinn. Roll & Tim Tams for Santa

This was our first year spending Christmas with just the two of us.  We've gone to see my family every year since we've been married.  Although I missed my family, it was nice starting our own traditions.  It was fun for us to go through existing traditions from our families and decide which to keep and also learn about other traditions that we would like to add for our family.  Here are some of the Moon family traditions that will be carried on in the Donat household:

1) Watch Home Alone on Christmas Eve
2) Big Christmas Eve Dinner
3) Family Christmas "program"
2) Open 1 present on Christmas Eve (pjs or something similar)
3) Leave Santa a note with treats (keep the milk in the fridge, he likes it cold)
4) Someone has to check that Santa came in the morning and take pictures (I reluctantly got this job this year)
5) Stockings are first
6) Alternate opening presents
7) Big Christmas breakfast
8) Christmas day movie (we saw the new Chronicles of Narnia this year)
9) DRINK LOTS OF PUNCH

I may be forgetting some things, but this is a run-down of traditions we have decided to keep.  Here are some changes/additions we have made for our own family:

1) Have the missionaries over for Christmas Eve dinner, "program," and presents
2) My dad always reads Luke 2 as we put the pieces of the nativity together.  Josh loves the story of the Nephite's Christmas so we have decided to read that Christmas Eve, and read Luke 2 at the breakfast table Christmas day.
3) Next year we hope to implement an advent of some kind.  We didn't this year because we are still deciding exactly how we would like to do that.
4) Track Santa on NORAD

Josh was very adamant about 3 things:  Seeing a movie Christmas Day, having the missionaries over Christmas Eve, and reading 3 Nephi 1.  I compromised by making sure we still fit in Luke 2 and the nativity at some point, I got to watch Home Alone, and I got to drink lots of holiday punch :-)

I'm sure we will continue to add various traditions as the years go on.  I'm sure our kids will implement some of their own traditions that will just make the holidays even better!  I LOVE Christmas and I LOVE traditions.  I missed having Devon around because he's my tradition buddy, but Josh was very good at making sure things were done correctly :-)  *Side note:  this was the first Christmas Devon and I were not together (that's 19 Christmas' we have shared consecutively).  Pretty crazy!

Our pretty little Christmas tree

Don't worry- this has been put away for next weeks BIG game :-)

I love my Chicago Bears stocking!  DA BEARS!!

Best slippers EVER

Santa must know Josh is a baseball guru!!