Skip to main content

Christmas Break Highlights: 2014 Edition

Christmas break has always my favorite two and a half weeks of the year, but I've grown to love it even more than I ever thought possible ever since I up and moved across the country to go to college. There's no better feeling than landing at Washington Reagan and seeing the Washington Monument and the Capitol from the tarmac! We have established so many classic Christmas break traditions that are highlights every year!

1. Quality family time.
It's quite lucky that my family and I get along so well, because we had plenty of quality time together this break! Whether we were going on fun outings, shopping, or just sitting around the living room talking or watching a Hallmark Christmas movie, we have so much fun just being together! We also made our return to ICE at the Gaylord Hotel at National Harbor, resulting in many quality pictures and rides down the ice slide. 


DC Temple Lights! As an added bonus, I ran into my good friend Anna who's serving a mission there! 


I legitimately teared up when I saw this Ferris Wheel modeled after the London Eye (just ask my sisters).

And again when we passed my London favourite, Nando's. I might miss London just a little.
3 years later and we still got it.


2. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day
I absolutely love our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day traditions. We start out the festivities with a delicious dinner. Then the cousins put on a little Christmas Eve concert followed by caroling to my grandparents' neighbors. Then we get to go home and open our matching Christmas jammies. Now that we're all older, we have to be woken up on Christmas morning. No more jumping on my parents' bed at 5:30 a.m! We start off the day with a cup of hot chocolate. Then we open our stockings and then go downstairs for presents. My mom cooks a delicious brunch, and then we spend the evening having Christmas dinner at my grandparents' house! 
So fun to have the squad all together for Christmas for the first time since 2011!

Grandma's beautiful table setting!

Family selfie #wheresdad


The most regal family in all of Northern Virginia.
Christmas morning! 
3. Buhler/Freeman Night
A Buhler/Freeman night has become a staple of Christmas break and I love it! Our families have been good friends since I was in elementary school and we have way too much fun together! We took over a large section of tables at Potbelly's for several hours talking and laughing! The Buhlers are just the best and I love them dearly!
We love our Cole Baby! 

Kenna could easily pass as a 5th Freeman sister! 


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Until We Meet Again

           On Friday, my Grandma Freeman passed away. She was almost 90 years old and lived a long, full life. She was kind, loving, a hard worker, and fiercely loyal. She taught elementary school, and I've always loved the fact that both of my grandmas were teachers, and good ones at that. We joke in our family that teaching runs in our blood, and it's an honor to be able to carry on her legacy.            For most of the years I was growing up, she lived in New York, in the small, small town of Hornell. My dad would take us on weekend trips to visit during the summers. In fact my first time driving on the highway with my learner's permit was on the way up to visit them one summer, and I remember proudly announcing that when we walked into the house. We would always start off our visits with a trip to the ONLY restaurant in town (Pizza Hut) and then stop by the ONLY grocery store in town (Wegman's) for ice cream to take home,...

My Journey to Self-Confidence

This is a picture of me almost exactly three years ago: And this is a picture of me now: Now, you might be thinking this is one of those stories that you see in Weight Watchers ads on T.V. endorsing a diet. I promise it's not. This journey was about so much more than a number on a scale. It was about working towards being able to recognize my divine nature as a daughter of God. I'll start at the beginning. When I started my freshman year at BYU, my self-confidence was at an all time low. I would try on about five outfits every morning, look in the mirror, and then immediately change. My low self-esteem was reflected in the way I talked to people, the way I dressed, and just the overall way that I carried myself. I compared myself to everyone else around me and was constantly tearing myself down. My lack of self-esteem seemed so obvious, yet it seemed like no one truly understood how I felt. I knew I needed to make some changes, but I just didn't know how. Af...

Never, Ever, Ever, Give Up

           I remember when I was 8 years old, I joined our neighborhood pool's swim team. To say that I was an AWFUL swimmer from the beginning of my ill-fated swimming career was an understatement. For starters, my dive into the pool was basically a glorified jump with my arms over my head. I remember we would get ribbons the Monday after a meet for each event that we had placed in. If you didn't place in any of your events, you got this yellow ribbon that said "Good Swim" on it. I had a nice collection of those "Good Swim" ribbons by the end of that season, but it didn't curb my enthusiasm in the slightest. I loved swimming and even though I was the slowest one in my age group and my three younger sisters could each swim circles around me, I went to every practice, gave it my all, and even started swimming year round.           No matter how hard I practiced and trained, I never became a great swimmer. The older I got, the more...