Merry Christmas! This ornament may say Happy Holidays, but it really means Merry Christmas to me and to all of you!
This year illness and, to quote my doctor, a "serious" surgery threatened to sap my Christmas joy. I was worried that I would end up having a Grinchy Christmas.
That picture is from the I Can Has Cheeseburger site.
Although we didn't go all out this year, a little bit of the Christmas spirit did manage to grace my home. My wooden Santa was placed out front, and that is all we got done as far as outside decoration. It just wouldn't be the same if my Santa wasn't standing next to my door though!
Inside, I placed only a very few decorations. Here is a prim Santa that I bought years ago either at a Country Peddler or Home and Garden party. He is on top of my pie safe.
Hanging on the door of the pie safe is a snowman pic that I put out every year.
And finally, a cute hand crafted snowman sits atop my display cabinet with my teddy bears.
The task of setting up the Christmas tree fell to my sons this year. There was some grumbling as the tree is really a pain in the butt to put together, but they did it! They added lights and youngest son put the ribbon up. I managed to put a few ornaments on. It isn't the prettiest tree and it's far from perfect, but it's up and decorated, and I'm sure enjoying it! My family room is decorated in blues, reds, and greens and those are the colors of the lights and most of the ornaments.
I've read that every Christmas tree is supposed to have a bird nest!
Here are some of my ornaments.
I almost forgot the angel tree topper. It was hard to get a good pic because the tree is about 7' tall.
A few years back, I made my own Christmas tradition of serving a breakfast casserole. What I love about it is that it is so easy to make, and you prepare it the night before, let it sit covered in the fridge all night, and then simply pop it in the oven the next morning. After presents are opened, you have a nice hot, tasty breakfast.
While I have lost the original recipe, this is how I made it. Spray Pam in the 9"x13" pan, then tear up 6 slices of bread. I include the crust, but you don't have to. Chop 8 ounces of Velveeta into the pan, spreading it about the pan evenly. Do the same with 8 ounces of cubed ham. You can buy this in the store in a nice package if you like things easy like I do. Dot a half stick of butter over the top. In a bowl, add six eggs to 4 cups of milk, mix thoroughly and add a squirt of mustard to the mix. I never add salt or pepper to anything, but most people will want to do this. Pour evenly over the other ingredients. This must sit a minimum of 4 hours, and is even better if you refrigerate overnight. Bake at 350 degrees for an hour to 75 minutes. And this is what you get!
Oh this tastes so good on Christmas morning! My kids request that I make this every Christmas and they gobble it right down.
First off, presents must be opened. Jared came downstairs wrapped in his blanket. Sean only looks half awake. Jake the dog had to get in on all the fun too.
As I am still not feeling 100%, my youngest brother decided to bring most of Christmas dinner to my house and cook it here! All I provided was a cranberry jello salad. He brought a ham that he was given at work, homemade mashed potatoes, candied sweet potatoes, corn, biscuits, and pumpkin pie. Here he is cooking at my stove. Hey ladies, he is single! I was so blessed by my brother this year!
My kids threatened to boycott chores if I took pics of them at the table. Believe me, it was nothing fancy. Daughter Tara and her fiance were on vacation in Tennessee with her fiance's family members. They were in a cabin near Pigeon Forge and having a great time.
As for me, I had a pretty darn good Christmas after all!
Several people have asked how I am healing. I am doing pretty well. I was able to get out and do some very quick Christmas shopping on Wednesday, and also drove to the grocery store and did grocery shopping with the help of my youngest son. The latter was not my best idea as I was pretty sore. Today I am feeling great with minimal soreness. I only took pain meds the first four days I was home from the hospital. I see the doctor on the 30th, and that's when the staples (26) come out of my belly. It's a good thing I wasn't travelling this Christmas. I would probably have set off metal detectors!
I hope everyone else had a blessed Christmas day filled with family and love!
