The only Christmas-y things I've done so far this year are shop and bake a batch of cookies for a cookie exchange at work. One of these days I'll get around to putting up the tree, I suppose. It'll have to be this week because my niece is coming over to bake and shop with me on Friday and Saturday, and I'd never hear the end of it if she arrived to find the house sans holiday decor.
To help me get in the mood, I figured I'd pick up this holiday meme I first saw at Everything I know about hiking...I learned wearing flip-flops.
1. Eggnog or hot chocolate? Hot chocolate! I like it with a shot of peppermint or butterscotch schnapps and some whipped cream on top.
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? Santa wraps presents and puts them in stockings and/or on the hearth. For the last several years, we've been letting Santa off the hook for gifts because neither I nor my husband really find a lot of value in trying to gather a stockings-worth of little presents for each other.
3. Colored lights or white on tree/house? I have white icicle lights outside, but I'm not going to put them up this year. For the tree, I just bought some colored LED lights.
4. Do you hang mistletoe? I have a little ball of fake mistletoe over our kitchen door that's been up since last Christmas because I forgot to pack it with the rest of the decorations. It inspires less kissing than you might imagine because we've pretty much stopped noticing that it's there.
5. When do you put your decorations up? Usually I do it at the beginning of December, but I'm running late this year.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? I love roast turkey and dressing and I'm perfectly happy to have it for Thanksgiving and Christmas both.
7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? I always enjoyed Christmas eve. My grandparents, aunt and uncle would come to our house for dinner. We'd have a fire in the fireplace and sing Christmas carols, and then my grandfather would tell or read Christmas stories.
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? My parents went to great lengths to keep the illusion going (buying different wrapping paper for Santa's gifts, etc.), but I eventually started to figure it out. When I asked my mother if Santa was real, she explained it in terms of what Santa represents, which satisfied me.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Not necessarily. However, my husband has a very difficult time buying me a gift and not giving it to me immediately, so sometimes we'll exchange our gifts early.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? When I first moved out on my own, I bought a bunch of fairly plain starter ornaments and I've been adding one or two pieces to my ornament collection every year since. I like to get ornaments to commemorate things I like or places I've been.
11. Snow, love it or dread it? I love the way it looks but I dread having to commute in it.
12. Do you know how to ice skate? Sort of. I learned when I was a kid but I never got very good at it. The last time I tried to ice skate was on a first date with a guy while I was in college. I got out onto the ice and immediately fell backward and hit my head on the ice HARD. I saw stars and it hurt so much I cried. Needless to say, the date was pretty much over before it began.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I remember my first Barbie doll when I was a kid. She was just a standard Malibu Barbie, but I liked her a lot.
14. What’s the most important thing about the holidays for you? Getting together with family.
15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Chocolate cake roll with peppermint ice cream filling.
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? See #14.
17. What tops your tree? I have an angel that looks disturbingly like Celine Dion.
18. Which do you prefer giving or receiving? Giving. I love watching people open the gifts I got them.
19. Favorite Christmas song? I like "O Holy Night." I worked on it at a recent vocal lesson. It's a good one to sing.
20. Favorite flavor of candy canes? Classic peppermint.
I borrowed your idea and reposted with my answers over at the soapbox. Thank you.
Posted by: Keith | December 11, 2006 at 02:13 PM
I feel all Christmasy all the sudden. :) I love O Holy Night, too. So pretty. At casa de Blondie/Dorothy, we each get each other one stocking gift--something small, like $10 or something. Then Ma fills up the rest of the stocking with chocolate and mini post-its.
Posted by: Blondie | December 11, 2006 at 09:01 PM
Hee, I'm laughing at several of these. I can relate to #9 - Mark can't wait to give the presents either. And I am slightly disturbed by the Celine Dion Angel tree topper. I hope you'll give us a picture of that one.
Posted by: Aimee | December 11, 2006 at 09:42 PM