Christmas Time!

Christmas is by far one of my favorite holidays, not because of the receiving of gifts, but because of the overall feel of the holiday.  Christmastime brings joy to the cold, sometimes dreary beginning of winter.  The decorations make everything look a bit nicer, and add more color to the washed out look of the outdoors.  It is also a lot of fun to decorate the house and outdoors with my family.  Every year on a Saturday, my whole family spends the whole day decorating the whole house, inside and out, for the holidays.  My favorite part of the decorating process is the tree.  We always get a real Christmas tree which makes the whole house smell great.  I also love baking Christmas cookies and gingerbread at this time.  I usually hate to bake, but being able to decorate them after makes it worth it.  Usually, I bake gingerbread men and cookies with friends or family this time of year.  Although all these activities are great, my alltime favorite part of Christmas is being able to see my whole family on both my Mom's and Dad's sides.  This is often the only time during the year that I am able to see any of them.  It is great having a reunion at this time of year.  Usually, I will see them all on Christmas Eve at my Grandparents' house.  On Christmas morning, my whole family usually has brunch at my house after opening presents at their own houses.  We usually just hang out around my house until later, when everyone goes to my Aunt's house for dinner.  The whole day is family-based.  On the day after Christmas, we travel to New Hampshire to celebrate Christmas with my Mom's side of the family.  We all usually stay at the same place, and it's really fun being able to hang out with my cousins that I don't normally get to see.  Overall, Christmas is my favorite holiday because of the great times that I have with family and friends.  I'm really looking forward to it this year!