it's the most wonderful (and busiest) time of the year

Ben and I celebrated our first christmas as a married couple this year. It was so much fun and I can't believe it is already over. We started lots of traditions that I hope will follow for the many years to come. 

First we picked out a live christmas tree. My family is all about the live trees and so I insisted we buy a live tree. Ben was very supportive and we ended up getting a five foot tree. Perfect for our little apartment. White & gold was the theme.

We became quite the bakers & crafters this holiday season. We decided to make peppermint bark for our neighbors to enjoy, which ended up being many batches of peppermint bark! We made egg nog cupcakes to bring to the Hawker christmas eve dinner. They tasted so good and I plan on keeping the recipe for future holiday parties. We also decided to make homemade gifts for various family members. I think it really added a nice touch. 

Ben was quite the help!

We combined both of our families' tradition of watching the Christmas Carol by going to the play the night before Christmas Eve with the Hawkers and watching The Muppet Christmas Carol, which my family watches every year, couple days before that. The Christmas Carol is the perfect way to remember the true meaning of Christmas. 

Despite being away from my family this Christmas, I would say it was one for the books. The best part was waking up Christmas morning with Ben and opening some of the presents we gave to each other. It was the perfect way to start off the day.