Merry Christmas Eve Morning!

Hi all!

It's the first day of my vacay from school, a Saturday too... and yet I woke up at 7:30 am and can't go back to sleep.  The anticipation of Christmas gets me just like it did when I was a kid!  I am loving that Christmas Eve is a Saturday this year, and that our winter break from school begins right at Christmas week.

This morning, Mr. Lock and I are having a mini Christmas morning just the two of us.  We spoiled each other, or so it would seem looking under my condo Christmas tree!  We're going to open gifts and then have brunch.  Then, I'll be packing up to get ready to go to my parents house.  We're first going to have an afternoon visit with Mr. Lock's family, then he's driving me up to my parents where he'll stay to have dinner and an evening visit with my family.  My uncle is also coming to town tonight to join us for dinner.  Then, Mr. Lock will drive back to his family home.

Our Christmas Eve tradition is to have all appetizers / finger foods for dinner.  We then have coffee or hot chocolate and eat Christmas cookies around the tree.  Then, my dad always takes my brothers and I for a drive around the neighbourhood to see the Christmas lights.  I'm 26-years-old, but I still want to go for my Christmas Lights drive tonight.  There's just something about traditions!

Then it will be Christmas morning with my family tomorrow!  We'll have a huge brunch, and later a big turkey dinner ("Repeat Thanksgiving" as I call it -- but for my American friends, remember that OUR Thanksgiving was back at the beginning of October!).  On Boxing Day, my mom, dad and brothers and I will head to my paternal grandparents home and have another Christmas Day with my father's side of the family.

I love having this all begin today, and take up the whole weekend.  It just seems to be making it that much more exciting!  I love how Christmas takes me right back to feeling like a kid again, haha.

Merry Christmas, one and all, if you celebrate it!  I hope you have lovely visits with family, delicious meals on your table, and a little bit of fun opening up some surprises and gifts.  My favourite part is the giving of gifts, I'm so looking forward to everyone else opening up what I've wrapped for them!

Now I'm going to watch the 1947 version of Miracle on 34th Street while I wait for Mr. Lock to be as awake as I am!