Christmas Eve

I postponed this prompt until now since it has to do with Christmas Eve.

List any Christmas Eve traditions you might have. Do you do some last minute shopping? Do you go to church on Christmas Eve instead of Christmas Day? Do you exchange gifts on Christmas Eve instead of Christmas Day? If you have children, do you do anything special for them on this day?

We don't really have a Christmas Eve routine, mostly because it depends on my schedule. I had to work yesterday/last night, so I came home this morning a little tired and not wanting to really do anything except take a shower. We had to get one last minute present for the son of a family friend, and we had to pick up our Honey-Baked Ham. That was all that was a must-do on the agenda, so DH and I lounged around for a bit until after lunch. He went out to do those two things. I got to go to Coldstone Creamery with the kids.

I got a coupon for a free "Love It" size ice-cream for my birthday, and it expired today, so I didn't want that to go to waste. I actually got a coffee ice cream shake like I always do, and DS#2 got a shake (the flavor changes) like he always does. My oldest son got the big ice cream cone that was free with the coupon--he's a growing boy, after all. DD insisted on a chocolate shake this time, which she didn't finish as usual. That meant that DH got the rest of her shake when we got home.

It was late enough by then that we went ahead and got ready for church. We wanted to go to the 5PM Christmas Eve mass this year so we could be free to lounge around and play with our new toys on Christmas Day. At mass, we saw our good friends (DS#3's godfather and his family) who invited us to their house for some hors d'oeuvres. That was perfect since we hadn't planned on anything much for dinner and this way we wouldn't have to cook! We only stayed for about an hour and a half, but it was really nice to socialize for a bit and have some good food.

At home, everyone took their baths/showers and the little ones went to bed. I'm on the computer and DH is wrapping presents. I think I'd better go help now. I'm a little behind on the photos on this blog. I'll try to post some tomorrow!

Merry Christmas, Everyone!!!