We spend a lot of time with my husband’s family. On Christmas Eve, we’re having lunch at a great seafood place with my mother-in-law’s family. There will be 13 of us, and after lunch we’re going back to one uncle’s house for dessert, coffee, and a gift exchange. They all live about an hour from here, so we’ll be back sometime in the late afternoon. Then, we’ll probably relax until it’s time to set out cookies and milk for Santa. We usually let the kids open one small gift each on Christmas Eve, then we try to get a nice photo of them in front of the tree. My mother in law makes the kids matching Christmas pajamas each year, which is so adorable and I hope the kids don’t hate us for it someday. Once the kids are asleep, we get ready for Christmas morning, usually while watching a movie and enjoying a bottle of wine.
On Christmas morning, we wake up at some ungodly hour and watch the kids ohh and ahh over gifts from Santa. While they dig into their stockings, we make coffee and try to wake up a bit. The kids then open their gifts from us, my in-laws stop by for breakfast and more gifts, and eventually we all get dressed. We drive two hours to my husband’s cousin’s house. I have no idea how many people will be there this year, but I know it will be a large crowd. This cousin is a chef, so we spend the rest of Christmas Day eating too much and drinking too much. Our kids run around with their cousins, open more presents, and have a ball. We spend the night and have a great breakfast with lots of coffee and Tylenol before finally driving home.
I’ll probably at least make Christmas cookies, maybe some candies and treats for gift baskets. Last year we made a gingerbread house, so maybe I’ll try that again. Anyway, we have a lot of fun each year. My husband’s family is a riot, and I love that our kids get to spend time with their cousins. I grew up with a small family, no other kids, so I really appreciate that my kids get to experience a large, loving family this time of year.