gingerbread and sugarplums

One of our Christmas day activities was a gingerbread house/train decorating contest.  We waited too long to buy gingerbread house kits and almost every store was sold out, so we supplemented with trains.  It was all very official, with randomly drawn teams and a strict 30 minute time limit. 

The lone house was built by Team America, if you couldn't tell by the roof design. 

Some teams used more icing than others, but everyone had a great time. 

 

My sister and I literally spent the entire day on Christmas Eve preparing food.  It was rainy and cold and I loved having her company in the warm kitchen.  Our hard work paid off too because we had plenty to eat while everyone was here and then Steve and I enjoyed the leftovers for the rest of the week. 

 

On Christmas night, we toasted the year with Almdudler, Steve's favorite Austrian soft drink.  Our sweet friend, Kayla, brought us some all the way from Germany a few weeks ago.  It tastes a little like ginger ale and a little like carbonated fruit juice.  And, there are yodelers on the label. 

 

Looking back over all the pictures, it's hard for me to believe that we fit so much fun into a few short days!  We played cards and watched movies and roasted chestnuts and threw the football.  There was even a mini jam session one morning with Steve on his new mandolin and Brenna on the electric guitar. 

 

Today, on the last day of the year, Steve and I are cozily working from home together.  I'm excited to be catching up on some sewing and ordering supplies and shipping out orders.  We haven't quite decided how we'll celebrate this evening, but I'm sure it will involve pajamas and being at home and that sounds plenty celebratory to me.  Hope your year ends on a happy note!