Alright, folks. There are two days left until Christmas. I thought I would share a few of our traditions. I’m part of a fairly large family on my mom’s side. My maternal grandmother had eight children and they all have children…and their children have children. You see where this is going. When my grandmother was alive, we always congregated at her house for major holidays. In the dozen years after she passed away, there were a few different houses and plans. Now, I think we’ve gotten to a pretty stable fall/winter calendar.

I’ve already mentioned that my mother hosted a Christmas part the second week of December. This is the third year, I believe, that she’s done it and she plans to continue. For our smaller family, my mother, me, my sister and her family (her husband and three boys) get together on Christmas Eve along with my BFF JK to celebrate. We eat (usually seafood) and open presents. My sister started the tradition when her boys were younger so that she could spend Christmas morning with her family without worrying about getting up and leaving her house early. I love that it’s time that our group can get together and I’ve always enjoyed watching the boys open their gifts.

The big shebang, however, is Christmas brunch at my aunt’s house. People start arriving around 10 and the party has been known to last until 4 in the afternoon. My aunt will even include a theme every now and then for how we should all dress. In the past they’ve been as simple as the color red, as comfortable as pajamas and as hometown as Ravens. Everyone looks forward to it each year – the seemingly endless amounts of food, the mimosas (yum!) and the laughter. It’s such a great way to spend the holiday.