This is the first year that my family has had Christmas at my place. It is also the first time I’ve had Christmas at my place, since moving here to work at 3ABN in 1999. It was a little bit stressful, since Christmas fell immediately on the heels of the GYC convention. Getting home from GYC was a challenge in itself. You can read all about it at the end of my post about GYC on my Xanga blog.

I had hoped to have a Christmas tree, but a full week before Christmas all the local suppliers (including Wal-Mart, Menards, Home Depot, Lowe’s) were completely sold out. I don’t really care for artificial trees … they just seem so fake … so this year we went without a tree. Well, not completely. My rubber plant and ficus did extra duty as stand-ins.

My rubber plant decorated with Christmas lights — not too bad:

All the gifts around the plants:

Because Eugene and Heidi were in a hurry to get back to OHC, we had Christmas a day early this year, on Monday. So for me, it feels like Christmas is already past, even though today is Christmas.

Eugene and Heidi with their pile of winnings:

My mom and Heidi did most of the cooking, but I did contribute a little bit. I found a recipe for “Apple Cranberry Crisp,” and made that. The ingredients in the mixing bowl looked so good, I had to take a picture. I may post the recipe later.

Granny Smith apples and cranberries — the two key ingredients in Apple Cranberry Crisp:

Heidi and Eugene purchased this beautiful bouquet that decorated our table:

We had a really nice and filling Christmas dinner. But I didn’t get any photos of it. The photo below is from our much lighter supper.

Eugene, Heidi, and Mom:

Finally, in the evening we played a game of Rummikub, and then watched a video (The Privileged Planet). It was a fun day, and I really enjoyed the time with family. Seems like all too soon it was over.