Christmas 2017
It's become a bit of a tradition for me to write about my Christmas Eve. I've made a post on or around that day for the last three years and of course, I wouldn't let that tradition break this year. However, I've found myself inclined to document a couple more of the days around Christmas just for fun. Christmas time is usually packed with social engagements with people you probably don't see that often, a bit of stress to keep the many wheels turning at the same time but it's also filled with quiet appreciation.
Christmas Eve Eve - which is still think is such a damn silly name - was the day that we finally decorated our Christmas tree. To be fair, we had only picked up the tree a day prior. We've never been the people who have a tree up for all or most of December, instead it is usually only allowed a few days but that does not mean that we don't enjoy it immensely.
The house had generally been a bit spare of regular Christmas decorations, as we've all been busy with different things like school, projects, exams and work. However, we did get our lights up on the front of the house early in December - thanks to my father. It's one of the things I love a whole lot about December. So many houses are adorned with lights that brings a bit of brightness to this very dark month.
Another activity on Christmas Eve Eve was to make home made treats out of marzipan and other sweets for decoration. I'm not sure if there is even an English name for this but making "konfekt"has been a tradition in our family for quite a while. It's become tradition that I create at least one bigger piece that's more focused on being a creative endeavour rather than delicious (it's all made of sweets, so obviously it is still delicious). This year that turned out to be a seal, made on my brother's request. My grandmother likes to keep my creations and she still has some from years and years ago (all dried up mind you) but this year I do believe my little seal got eaten. I don't like marzipan, so I tend to leave the eating to the rest of the family.
Christmas is not Christmas without æbleskiver (again a Danish tradition which doesn't have a proper English name). They're honestly the best. Always complimented with powdered sugar and jam, they're just little circles of deliciousness. We had some in the afternoon and Mum matched with with a glass of white port, which is a gift from one of my workplaces. I'm enjoying wine a bit more lately but I definitely prefer port, which makes sense since I really like rom.
Swiftly after stuffing my face, I made an exit to go visit my horse. Unfortunately, our smith had broken his ankle, so we got into a lot of trouble with having someone tend to her hooves so while we waited on someone to do that, she had been enjoying a few riding-free days. I doubt she minded too much, even if I also know that she enjoys channeling her energy into something. Obviously, she could not be left out from getting a present (especially since she always "gets" the rest of the family members something). As can be seen below, she tugged into her treat immediately.
Back home I went to eat more food. The day before I had returned home with some butter cakes (part of the Christmas gift from work) and my brother mistakenly thought it was patty shells and instantly got a craving for them. That craving got satisfied on Christmas Eve Eve when he and my mother took it upon themselves to cook some, even with two different types of filling. They tasted heavenly. So damn good and we went to town.
As the night drew nearer, we lit the Christmas tree and danced around it to a few songs. As usual we kept messing up the lyrics a bit but that did not take away from the wonderful experience. We clearly don't sing the songs often enough to remember them by heart but there's something endearing about us shouting altered lyrics from the top of our lungs as well. The tree was adorned with red lights instead of white ones this year and it looked wonderful. Next year, I'll be in a place of my own and I'll have to get my own tree. Mum has already gifted me four of her lights and allowed me to bring a few of "my" decorations.
The following morning on Christmas Eve, we all jumped into the car and headed to Jutland to spend Christmas with my grandmother. Hallie is always very on edge when we're packing and she's undoubtedly worried that we'll leave her behind, even if that has never happened. The entire trunk of Dad's car was filled with presents and Mum sat with our dog up front. It was a roughly two hour drive but we also stopped by a coffee shop to grab some hot beverages, I went for a hot chocolate with marshmallows, A went for a chai tea and Mum went for her usual latte.
The moment we got through the door at my grandmother's, there was the smell of food in the air. Despite us telling her that she didn't have to prepare anything, she was cooking up æbleskiver. Though I was secretly thrilled about that to be fair. I've never made them from scratch before and the little machine was rather fun to use. Also, like I said before æbleskiver is a must during Christmas. She had also prepared mulled wine, which I'm not too big of a fan of but that very much belongs to Christmas as well.
I was wearing my very festive DnP Christmas jumper and Mum had made sure that the dogs would be able to wear something equally festive. Getting them to sit still for a photo in good lighting proved rather impossible but at least I managed to snap the one below. Look how adorable they are!
We had to decorate my grandmother's tree as well and as always my brother was a champ and super effective. Afterwards came the fun part of stuffing the presents under the tree and being baffled yet again by the sheer number of presents for just five people. After the tree was decorated and between checking up on the food in the kitchen, we managed to watch the last episode of Tinkas Juleeventyr, the new one of the Christmas TV shows. We've watched all of the episodes together as a family this year and that fact just warms my heart so much.
And of course, the Christmas dinner was next. I'm a huge fan of potatoes just in general and to have three types on the table is always a joy. While I don't eat meat that often anymore, I did on Christmas and the roast pork was delicious. Naturally, everything went with a big helping of brown sauce. I had like three portions and I'm rather impressed that I managed to remember to snap a photo of my plate rather than just dig in instantly. My grandmother did very well again and my little brother was the perfect kitchen helper. He's such a good egg. I love him dearly and he knows how to tackle our grandmother.
The Christmas tree got lit and we went for another round of dancing and singing. Again, I'm sure a little mixed up lyrics here and there sunk in but it most definitely did not take away from the festivities. It's all about having fun and we most certainly did.
The dogs didn't really get the singing, hand-holding and "dancing" but they were busy arguing over a toy, so they didn't pay too much attention to the five humans acting silly.
After the dance around the Christmas tree, it was time for presents. We always take it in turns, the youngest goes first and then we just keep going for rounds until we run out of presents. I had ten this year which was absolutely ridiculous and way too much. It was a bunch of things that I had wished for and some extra bits. From my parents, brother and pets, I got two mini Zoella Soak Opera bottles, Zoella Winter Wonder Hand, Tanya Burr's Velvet Vanilla Eau de Toilette, Pai Chamomile & Rosehip Calming Day Cream, a Schleich horse (which reminded Mum of Money), wool pants and long sleeved shirt from Femilet and an alpaca wool jumper. From my aunt, I got a blue riding shirt, which unfortunately has to be exchanged for a smaller size. From my grandmother, I got some warm riding socks I love and cash, though she really didn't have to give me money. I managed to snap a photo of some of the things below. Mum is always so damn good at organising buying presents and I have absolutely no idea how she does it.
After presents and munching on sweets, we retired to our beds. Christmas morning started out rather calmly and I managed to type up the final bit for one of my stories. There was a bit of a debate when we'd have to go visit Mum's sister and the rest of the family but in the end, we had Christmas lunch before. It was a huge selection yet again but I didn't eat as much this time.
As we had finished eating it was time to get into the car. First, we stopped by my grandfather's grave and I moved ahead enough to have just a moment of quiet with him. Afterwards, we headed onwards to go visit the extended family who reside in a forest nearby. The second we stepped inside of the door they were about to dance around the Christmas tree and we got robed into doing that as well. It was quite nice, as the youngest of the bunch, my cousin's son of 2, was the one choosing the songs. Surprisingly, I knew the majority of them, even if there also snuck in a couple of children's songs that weren't Christmas related. We had tea and a little sit down and chat with some of the family. We stayed just over an hour before we headed back to eat even more food at home. It was a short visit but it was nice to see them again.
At all of our dinners, it became custom that I had Hallie by my side on a lead, so that she didn't sneak off and munched on food on the counter when we weren't paying attention. I don't think she minded too much as there tended to fly plenty of food her way during dinner. Food is also a great way to get a dog to pay attention when you're trying to take a photo, as can be seen below.
In the evening, we played a game where we had to answer questions about events from 2017 and it was a hoot to play, even if we struggled with a lot of the questions. I had a genuine laughing fit. When the game turned to Mum answering questions about politics, I snuck off for a little while to watch the pinof bloopers, which was just as adorable as always. I came back out though for more hygge and I had wanted to watch The Heat with my father and brother but I was too tired, so I headed to bed.
The following morning, known as Boxing Day in the UK, we had to pack up our things after breakfast and head to a different spot in Jutland to have a Christmas lunch with my father's side of the family. It is another tradition that I quite enjoy, even if it can get awkward at times as we aren't as close with our family on that side. But this year it was really pleasant, I got to talk to my cousin who the same age as me quite a lot and I had the pleasure of sitting next to my little brother as well. He is rather gentlemanly when seated at the table and I'm not sure how an eighteen year old is allowed to be so sweet.
The food wasn't really for me but after so many days of indulging I really didn't mind. The infamous "pakkeleg" was just as wild and fun as usual. At one point, I think I had six or seven gifts but they all got stolen from me and I ended up with just the one I had picked in the first round. No complaining from me though, it was a Christmas tin with homemade pebernødder inside, curtesy of my Dad's youngest sister. My brother also gifted me the silicone oven mitts that he won, which can be seen above. While I said I didn't enjoy the food too much, I did enjoy the dessert. Why not chop up a bunch of fruit but then add loads of chocolate and cream? It's a delicious thing that I only ever get on Boxing Day.
I normally agree to take the car for the drive home, so both of my parents can drink but this year Dad was the driver, as agreed upon after my mother nudged him. I'm still dealing with a lot of tiredness in extreme bouts and the weather and the traffic wasn't promising, so I'm ever so grateful that my father could take this trip for me. We got home around 8 PM and just went off to our separate corners of the house. I pulled up YouTube and got cosy. It felt good to be home.
With that the official Christmas days were over but you'll excuse me as I continue to add just two more days for the fun of it. Why the heck not? The next morning, I headed out to see my horse who the smith had been by while we were eating Christmas lunch with my father's family. I'm ever so thankful for him doing that, even on a holiday and especially since we're not a regular customer. It was wonderful to be able to ride my horse again, even if she had a truckload of energy. Also, my new favourite thing is taking photos of her up close as it always make her shot her nose forward to investigate my phone (who knows, it might be edible) and it always results in the most addable photos even if they also tend to be blurry.
I came home to grab a quick bite before jumping on the scooter and making a drive to my university to meet up with a couple of study buddies. We have an exam that's due on the 3rd of January and none of us have started yet. We just wanted to meet up and discuss ideas for a bit and I just hoped it would kick-start my motivation to actually start working on the exam. I had to head to work afterwards, which turned into a few hours of sitting in an empty reception just browsing tumblr and folding a few folders. When I came home, Dad had made risengrød for one final time while it was still seasonally appropriate. It was just my brother and I having dinner and it was quiet and lovely.
Mum had gotten an iPhone 7 as a Christmas present and I had promised to help set it up. It ended up taking a couple of hours with all the different updates, both on her old phone and the new one, as well as creating back-ups and so on. But I got it working and she now had a brand new phone in beautiful red colouring as well.
By now we're way past what someone might usually consider Christmas. Rather it's that odd space between Christmas and New Years where time doesn't quite feel real and your mind is usually torn between being in holiday mode but also trying to get back to normal. But I want to include just one more day because it was the day where we went to Christmas lunch (which is still called despite starting at 7 PM) with the people from the stables. During the day I was just snuggled up in bed writing my little heart out and catching up on the final YouTube videos in my Watch Later. It felt nice.
As usual, Dad had been ordered to the kitchen to cook plaice fillets for the Christmas Lunch. I'm so happy he does year after year, especially since it's only my Mum and I that attend it. But it's just so lovely to see the people from the stables out of their horse clothes and just relax and hang out a different atmosphere. We never stay for too long but it's always funny, even if my head felt a little buzzed from being around so many people talking over each other.
This Christmas time has been filled with so many lovely moments, even if it has had brief burst of stress and a need to retreat to recharge. It isn't really something you're allowed to do a lot during this time of year, but for someone like me with a social battery I still need to find quiet moments here and there. I think this post has turned into a very long ramble but I do love recounting my days on here so I can go back and rediscover them. During these days, I have found myself continuously feeling so blessed to have such a wonderful family. I don't know what I would do without them.
Christmas Eve Eve - which is still think is such a damn silly name - was the day that we finally decorated our Christmas tree. To be fair, we had only picked up the tree a day prior. We've never been the people who have a tree up for all or most of December, instead it is usually only allowed a few days but that does not mean that we don't enjoy it immensely.
The house had generally been a bit spare of regular Christmas decorations, as we've all been busy with different things like school, projects, exams and work. However, we did get our lights up on the front of the house early in December - thanks to my father. It's one of the things I love a whole lot about December. So many houses are adorned with lights that brings a bit of brightness to this very dark month.
Another activity on Christmas Eve Eve was to make home made treats out of marzipan and other sweets for decoration. I'm not sure if there is even an English name for this but making "konfekt"has been a tradition in our family for quite a while. It's become tradition that I create at least one bigger piece that's more focused on being a creative endeavour rather than delicious (it's all made of sweets, so obviously it is still delicious). This year that turned out to be a seal, made on my brother's request. My grandmother likes to keep my creations and she still has some from years and years ago (all dried up mind you) but this year I do believe my little seal got eaten. I don't like marzipan, so I tend to leave the eating to the rest of the family.
Christmas is not Christmas without æbleskiver (again a Danish tradition which doesn't have a proper English name). They're honestly the best. Always complimented with powdered sugar and jam, they're just little circles of deliciousness. We had some in the afternoon and Mum matched with with a glass of white port, which is a gift from one of my workplaces. I'm enjoying wine a bit more lately but I definitely prefer port, which makes sense since I really like rom.
Swiftly after stuffing my face, I made an exit to go visit my horse. Unfortunately, our smith had broken his ankle, so we got into a lot of trouble with having someone tend to her hooves so while we waited on someone to do that, she had been enjoying a few riding-free days. I doubt she minded too much, even if I also know that she enjoys channeling her energy into something. Obviously, she could not be left out from getting a present (especially since she always "gets" the rest of the family members something). As can be seen below, she tugged into her treat immediately.
Back home I went to eat more food. The day before I had returned home with some butter cakes (part of the Christmas gift from work) and my brother mistakenly thought it was patty shells and instantly got a craving for them. That craving got satisfied on Christmas Eve Eve when he and my mother took it upon themselves to cook some, even with two different types of filling. They tasted heavenly. So damn good and we went to town.
As the night drew nearer, we lit the Christmas tree and danced around it to a few songs. As usual we kept messing up the lyrics a bit but that did not take away from the wonderful experience. We clearly don't sing the songs often enough to remember them by heart but there's something endearing about us shouting altered lyrics from the top of our lungs as well. The tree was adorned with red lights instead of white ones this year and it looked wonderful. Next year, I'll be in a place of my own and I'll have to get my own tree. Mum has already gifted me four of her lights and allowed me to bring a few of "my" decorations.
The following morning on Christmas Eve, we all jumped into the car and headed to Jutland to spend Christmas with my grandmother. Hallie is always very on edge when we're packing and she's undoubtedly worried that we'll leave her behind, even if that has never happened. The entire trunk of Dad's car was filled with presents and Mum sat with our dog up front. It was a roughly two hour drive but we also stopped by a coffee shop to grab some hot beverages, I went for a hot chocolate with marshmallows, A went for a chai tea and Mum went for her usual latte.
The moment we got through the door at my grandmother's, there was the smell of food in the air. Despite us telling her that she didn't have to prepare anything, she was cooking up æbleskiver. Though I was secretly thrilled about that to be fair. I've never made them from scratch before and the little machine was rather fun to use. Also, like I said before æbleskiver is a must during Christmas. She had also prepared mulled wine, which I'm not too big of a fan of but that very much belongs to Christmas as well.
I was wearing my very festive DnP Christmas jumper and Mum had made sure that the dogs would be able to wear something equally festive. Getting them to sit still for a photo in good lighting proved rather impossible but at least I managed to snap the one below. Look how adorable they are!
We had to decorate my grandmother's tree as well and as always my brother was a champ and super effective. Afterwards came the fun part of stuffing the presents under the tree and being baffled yet again by the sheer number of presents for just five people. After the tree was decorated and between checking up on the food in the kitchen, we managed to watch the last episode of Tinkas Juleeventyr, the new one of the Christmas TV shows. We've watched all of the episodes together as a family this year and that fact just warms my heart so much.
And of course, the Christmas dinner was next. I'm a huge fan of potatoes just in general and to have three types on the table is always a joy. While I don't eat meat that often anymore, I did on Christmas and the roast pork was delicious. Naturally, everything went with a big helping of brown sauce. I had like three portions and I'm rather impressed that I managed to remember to snap a photo of my plate rather than just dig in instantly. My grandmother did very well again and my little brother was the perfect kitchen helper. He's such a good egg. I love him dearly and he knows how to tackle our grandmother.
The Christmas tree got lit and we went for another round of dancing and singing. Again, I'm sure a little mixed up lyrics here and there sunk in but it most definitely did not take away from the festivities. It's all about having fun and we most certainly did.
The dogs didn't really get the singing, hand-holding and "dancing" but they were busy arguing over a toy, so they didn't pay too much attention to the five humans acting silly.
After the dance around the Christmas tree, it was time for presents. We always take it in turns, the youngest goes first and then we just keep going for rounds until we run out of presents. I had ten this year which was absolutely ridiculous and way too much. It was a bunch of things that I had wished for and some extra bits. From my parents, brother and pets, I got two mini Zoella Soak Opera bottles, Zoella Winter Wonder Hand, Tanya Burr's Velvet Vanilla Eau de Toilette, Pai Chamomile & Rosehip Calming Day Cream, a Schleich horse (which reminded Mum of Money), wool pants and long sleeved shirt from Femilet and an alpaca wool jumper. From my aunt, I got a blue riding shirt, which unfortunately has to be exchanged for a smaller size. From my grandmother, I got some warm riding socks I love and cash, though she really didn't have to give me money. I managed to snap a photo of some of the things below. Mum is always so damn good at organising buying presents and I have absolutely no idea how she does it.
After presents and munching on sweets, we retired to our beds. Christmas morning started out rather calmly and I managed to type up the final bit for one of my stories. There was a bit of a debate when we'd have to go visit Mum's sister and the rest of the family but in the end, we had Christmas lunch before. It was a huge selection yet again but I didn't eat as much this time.
As we had finished eating it was time to get into the car. First, we stopped by my grandfather's grave and I moved ahead enough to have just a moment of quiet with him. Afterwards, we headed onwards to go visit the extended family who reside in a forest nearby. The second we stepped inside of the door they were about to dance around the Christmas tree and we got robed into doing that as well. It was quite nice, as the youngest of the bunch, my cousin's son of 2, was the one choosing the songs. Surprisingly, I knew the majority of them, even if there also snuck in a couple of children's songs that weren't Christmas related. We had tea and a little sit down and chat with some of the family. We stayed just over an hour before we headed back to eat even more food at home. It was a short visit but it was nice to see them again.
At all of our dinners, it became custom that I had Hallie by my side on a lead, so that she didn't sneak off and munched on food on the counter when we weren't paying attention. I don't think she minded too much as there tended to fly plenty of food her way during dinner. Food is also a great way to get a dog to pay attention when you're trying to take a photo, as can be seen below.
In the evening, we played a game where we had to answer questions about events from 2017 and it was a hoot to play, even if we struggled with a lot of the questions. I had a genuine laughing fit. When the game turned to Mum answering questions about politics, I snuck off for a little while to watch the pinof bloopers, which was just as adorable as always. I came back out though for more hygge and I had wanted to watch The Heat with my father and brother but I was too tired, so I headed to bed.
The following morning, known as Boxing Day in the UK, we had to pack up our things after breakfast and head to a different spot in Jutland to have a Christmas lunch with my father's side of the family. It is another tradition that I quite enjoy, even if it can get awkward at times as we aren't as close with our family on that side. But this year it was really pleasant, I got to talk to my cousin who the same age as me quite a lot and I had the pleasure of sitting next to my little brother as well. He is rather gentlemanly when seated at the table and I'm not sure how an eighteen year old is allowed to be so sweet.
The food wasn't really for me but after so many days of indulging I really didn't mind. The infamous "pakkeleg" was just as wild and fun as usual. At one point, I think I had six or seven gifts but they all got stolen from me and I ended up with just the one I had picked in the first round. No complaining from me though, it was a Christmas tin with homemade pebernødder inside, curtesy of my Dad's youngest sister. My brother also gifted me the silicone oven mitts that he won, which can be seen above. While I said I didn't enjoy the food too much, I did enjoy the dessert. Why not chop up a bunch of fruit but then add loads of chocolate and cream? It's a delicious thing that I only ever get on Boxing Day.
I normally agree to take the car for the drive home, so both of my parents can drink but this year Dad was the driver, as agreed upon after my mother nudged him. I'm still dealing with a lot of tiredness in extreme bouts and the weather and the traffic wasn't promising, so I'm ever so grateful that my father could take this trip for me. We got home around 8 PM and just went off to our separate corners of the house. I pulled up YouTube and got cosy. It felt good to be home.
With that the official Christmas days were over but you'll excuse me as I continue to add just two more days for the fun of it. Why the heck not? The next morning, I headed out to see my horse who the smith had been by while we were eating Christmas lunch with my father's family. I'm ever so thankful for him doing that, even on a holiday and especially since we're not a regular customer. It was wonderful to be able to ride my horse again, even if she had a truckload of energy. Also, my new favourite thing is taking photos of her up close as it always make her shot her nose forward to investigate my phone (who knows, it might be edible) and it always results in the most addable photos even if they also tend to be blurry.
I came home to grab a quick bite before jumping on the scooter and making a drive to my university to meet up with a couple of study buddies. We have an exam that's due on the 3rd of January and none of us have started yet. We just wanted to meet up and discuss ideas for a bit and I just hoped it would kick-start my motivation to actually start working on the exam. I had to head to work afterwards, which turned into a few hours of sitting in an empty reception just browsing tumblr and folding a few folders. When I came home, Dad had made risengrød for one final time while it was still seasonally appropriate. It was just my brother and I having dinner and it was quiet and lovely.
Mum had gotten an iPhone 7 as a Christmas present and I had promised to help set it up. It ended up taking a couple of hours with all the different updates, both on her old phone and the new one, as well as creating back-ups and so on. But I got it working and she now had a brand new phone in beautiful red colouring as well.
By now we're way past what someone might usually consider Christmas. Rather it's that odd space between Christmas and New Years where time doesn't quite feel real and your mind is usually torn between being in holiday mode but also trying to get back to normal. But I want to include just one more day because it was the day where we went to Christmas lunch (which is still called despite starting at 7 PM) with the people from the stables. During the day I was just snuggled up in bed writing my little heart out and catching up on the final YouTube videos in my Watch Later. It felt nice.
As usual, Dad had been ordered to the kitchen to cook plaice fillets for the Christmas Lunch. I'm so happy he does year after year, especially since it's only my Mum and I that attend it. But it's just so lovely to see the people from the stables out of their horse clothes and just relax and hang out a different atmosphere. We never stay for too long but it's always funny, even if my head felt a little buzzed from being around so many people talking over each other.
This Christmas time has been filled with so many lovely moments, even if it has had brief burst of stress and a need to retreat to recharge. It isn't really something you're allowed to do a lot during this time of year, but for someone like me with a social battery I still need to find quiet moments here and there. I think this post has turned into a very long ramble but I do love recounting my days on here so I can go back and rediscover them. During these days, I have found myself continuously feeling so blessed to have such a wonderful family. I don't know what I would do without them.
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