Christmas in the New House

We always wanted to have a big family Christmas at our house. We have the table for it now and and invited my parents and my husband's mom and step dad. I planned a great menu and was so excited to finally have Christmas in OUR house.

Christmas morning was like mosts, children open their stockings from Santa. Only difference, our child has 4 legs and is extremely hairy. He was equally impatient about letting me take pictures before he could open his stocking. Santa brought him lots of goodies this year, a few of which survived the day.

After presents were open we moved onto starting the day of cooking. Our menu was going to be so delicious, I had been planning this thing for quite some time.

Appetizer: Charcuterie Board with Olives, Grapes, Pickles, Cheese, Meat, and Crackers; Cranberry Relish over Cream Cheese with Crackers

Entree: Roasted Asparagus and Cauliflower; Italian Herb Bread; Au Gratin Potatoes; Prime Rib with Blue Cheese and Horseradish Sauce

Dessert: Buche de Noel; Chocolate Mousse with a Pretzel Crust and Coconut Whipped Cream

It was such a fun day and the food was amazing, but one of my favorite traditions we started is to write a message on our tablecloth. I found a cream colored plain tablecloth that I set on my island where I displayed all of the food. Since I just spent all of this time making my table perfect, I didn't want to cover it up. Part of my centerpiece included pencils, one for everyone to write something onto the tablecloth. Before you wash the tablecloth, table a needle and colorful thread and stitch out the messages. This will make them permanent and allow you to wash the tablecloth. Do not use anything other than pencil since the lead will actually wash away when you're done. My mother has one the belonged to her mother and it is so much fun to read the messages from over the years. Hopefully this will become something special our children will enjoy for years to come.

Do you have any fun Christmas traditions you do every year?