There are a few things making this Christmas holiday different. First, I’ve never not slept in the same room (read: bed) as my sister on Christmas Eve. Even two years married, other circumstances prevented E and I from being together. Secondly, I’ve never not been home on Christmas. In all twenty-five of my winter seasons I’ve been tremendously fortunate to spend them right in my childhood home. But now comes change. And it will be wonderful yet difficult all rolled into one. We’ll be on Long Island with E’s family for the holiday. It’s a treasure to spend time with loved ones so every bit of me looks forward to that. I’ll learn their traditions, witness their festivities, and (likely) eat lots of delicious food. But I’ll feel those pangs of sadness upon waking in a different home. Those ‘growing pains,’ though, will turn into sweet moments, of that I’m sure.
Speaking of sweetness, this Nutcracker cupcake kit gets me unreasonably excited (really, I started conversations with everyone at the check-out counter to show them). So while there’s nothing but a box cake mix to see here, the toppings tell the story and offer some holiday cheer.
We wish you the merriest of Christmases and a delightful weekend surrounded by family and friends. Sunday I’m ringing in another year of my own life so follow the surprises on Instagram + Snapchat (and, yes, they’re surprises to me–E won’t say a word about what’s planned).
