Merry Christmas To All – It’s A Different Kind Of Year

Gathering Together

As we gather for our Christmas celebration we reflect on how this year has given us so many challenges. Those of you that are able to get together with your family are truly blessed. Although we will be having a “low-key” celebration it can still be special.

Just The Three Of Us

This year, it will just be the three of us – the Hubs, my 91-year-old Dad, and me. In spite of the small gathering, we are still going to celebrate and enjoy time with each other. Usually, Christmas Eve is more casual and we dine in the breakfast room. This year we will do the same and take it up a notch on Christmas Day and have dinner in our dining room. This is our first Christmas in our new home and we are loving creating new traditions.

Our Favorite Movie – The Holiday

We are having Christmas Fettuccini ala the Movie The Holiday tonight. If you recall, Iris makes this on Christmas Eve for her new friend Miles…and the rest is history. Our recipe is a longtime favorite and we always add some shrimp for a special treat on Christmas Eve. You can find the recipe here for Lemon Artichoke Linguini. We change up the pasta to fettuccini and just saute the shrimp and add at the end. This is a super easy recipe yet looks like you went to a lot of trouble. We are starting with a smoked fish spread and charcuterie platter. Then, we serve the fettuccini with some warm, crusty sourdough bread and a crisp salad.

Christmas Day

On Christmas morning we will light the fire, open a couple of gifts, and enjoy a Bloody Mary (or two). Of course, Christmas music will be playing and the tree will be sparkling.

Maybe after we open our gifts we will head over to the dock overlooking the river and enjoy the beautiful view. And after dinner, we may go for a drive to see all of the Christmas lights and decorations.

For Christmas Day dinner we are planning on a delicious Honey Glazed Ham, Cheesy Potatoes, Green Beans, and a mandarin orange salad. This is one of our favorite meals. We will serve the ham with assorted mustards to add a little something special.

We felt that this year we needed to make your holiday special by adding some little touches to enhance the experience. In the past, we always served our holiday meals on our Spode Christmas Tree dishes. This year we changed things up a bit and just went with a coastal Christmas theme.

Frankly, we are very blessed and do not need anything more in our lives. Staying healthy and safe is a priority and we are hoping and praying that next year will be a great improvement over 2020.

Create A Special Setting

So, we thought we would share a few photos of our home for the holidays. We are keeping it simple and making the best of our cherished moments together. Our Mom will be missed, as this is the second year without her. Since we moved to South Carolina our environment is different and we can add some new traditions. We know that Mom is with us in spirit again this year.

We wish you and your family health and happiness for the new year!