Christmas Eve at MomMom and PopPop's House

When I was a little kid, actually from the time I was little until I was in college, we would all gather at my grandparent's house every Christmas Eve after church (The 7 pm candle light service) to celebrate not only Christmas Eve, but 3 family member's birthdays. My grandmother, my aunt, and my cousin were all born on Christmas, so not only did we eat traditional Christmas cookies to treat our sweet tooth, but each member had a special cake!

I loved going to church on Christmas Eve and being allowed (when I was little) to hold a real lit candle! (They finally let me hold one when I got to high school without constantly watching me). Our family was a large one so many of us ended up celebrating the service together, which certainly I can appreciate now more.

After church we would head to my grandparents, excited to open gifts, and share in sweet treats. The evening was long and tiresome, and we usually drove my parents nuts as we needed to get home to put out cookies for Santa. The drive home was always special as my parents would ensure to have us listen to the local radio station broadcasting the flight of Santa so we knew where he was and would not worry that we might not be there in time. (Thanks daddy and mommy).

I have so many fond memories of all the Christmas Eve's and I cherish them all. We know longer have a huge crowd, but I have certainly ensured my children have their own holiday memories with the family that means the most to me. I miss my MomMom and PopPop throughout the year at various times, but especially Christmas Eve.