One of my favorite holiday rituals is our Christmas Countdown.

In the days leading up to Christmas, the boys select a holiday-themed activity (from a stack of pre-written cards) for us to do after school.

As the boys grow and evolve over the years, the list of activities changes slightly.

Here’s what I’m thinking for this year:

1. Visit a small-town Christmas parade
2. Drink eggnog
3. Drink hot chocolate (with homemade whipped cream in a can?)
4. Make marshmallows
5. Visit the 37th Street Lights  
6. Go ice-skating 
7. Attend an arts and crafts festival
8. Make chocolate chip cookies and deliver them to people experiencing homelessness
9. Make gingerbread houses
10. Make baked goods for colleagues and

Who needs a DIY Turkey Trot hat? Apparently I do!

I didn’t know I needed a turkey trot hat until last week when my cousin announced via text message that we would be doing a turkey trot over Thanksgiving Break.

Our entire family is coming together for Thanksgiving at the beach in Florida. It will be my parents, my brother/his wife/my niece and nephew, my cousin and her husband and three children, my other cousin and her boyfriend, my aunt, and my grandpa. In other words, the whole gang!

I asked my cousin how to sign up for the turkey trot, and it was explained to me that it wasn’t … Read More