Favorite Things

This is a bit of a misnomer, I suppose - perhaps "Favorite Things" is actually the umbrella term for all of the December highlights.  Here are a select few:

As an early birthday present, my mother treated me to tea at the Jefferson Hotel in Richmond.  The Jefferson is quite fancy, and the tea was both delicious and fun.  I'll never forget how much our server delighted in the suggestion we made to add a Santa hat to Jefferson's statue, so that he would look a little more festive..... I'm not sure the Queen would approve of our behavior at tea (maybe the Queen should start drinking bubbly at tea, like we do?), but it certainly was a wonderful time.

The Christmas Pageant is always a favorite.  The story of Jesus' birth, told by the children of our church, never fails to be one of my favorite parts of December.  This year, Pax was a sheep in wolf's clothing who was errant, wandering, and a tiny bit belligerent, demanding that his father wear the sheep ears and tail.  Leo was, of course, the Angel Gabriel (I don't think he'll ever give that up!) and Aidan was a King.  I had more of an investment in this pageant, too, beyond my own three children; the 5 middle schoolers in my Sunday School class participated in it as well, and for all of their harrumphing and pseudo-complaining, they made me so proud!

King; Angel Gabriel; Errant & Somewhat Belligerent, Naked Sheep

*Love*

Two traditions from my early days of being a mom were resurrected this year, all thanks, of course, to the other moms who made it so.  One friend hosted a cookie exchange, which I have not done for many years - yay for so many new kinds of cookies!  Another night, I hosted an ornament exchange (complete with mulled wine, jello shooters, baked brie, and delicious sweets). It was a great night with a very diverse group of women, some whom I've known for 9 years and others whose friendships are brand new to me this year.

Ready for my guests!

And finally, my last "Favorite Thing" happened on the first afternoon and evening of winter break. The day was chilly, damp, and brisk.  The kids got home from school early, and everyone was in a happy mood.  We built a big roaring fire, sipped hot cocoa and read Christmas books in front of the fire, all afternoon.  That night, we decided to have a spontaneous movie night. All five of us piled on the couch in our pajamas, snuggling under blankets.  We watched the movie "Elf," a sweet and funny film that infected us all with holiday cheer.... what a happy, cozy start to what continues to be an incredibly good winter break.

...but the fire inside is delightful!