Christmas Morning

Here is a little peek into our Christmas morning. Derek's parents, Jayne and Tim, flew in on Christmas Eve and made it to our home safely through the ice that was falling. On their way, they stopped at one of our favorite BBQ spots and brought everything from brisket to ribs and my very favorite sandwich - the Z Man. Oh, drool. It is bbq brisket with bbq sauce, melted provolone cheese and here's the kicker - onion rings on top! We stayed in by the fire and drank cider. The snow was falling and it was gorgeous.

It was a white Christmas! We were up early and had hot coffee. I made a delicious fruit salad with gala apples, banana, mandarin oranges and avocado drizzled with a poppyseed honey dressing, and our traditional egg fu casserole, and cranberry muffins that I ordered from Einstein Bros. Bagels. Jayne and Tim made it through the snow and we spent the day unwrapping gifts, playing, napping, and eating.

This was my first time "hostessing" a major holiday at our house, and though I felt like I was in the kitchen much of the day, I can't complain, because I very much love to cook. For dinner we had a honey baked ham that Derek stood in line outside in the sleet for an hour to pick up, and zucchini gratin and a fresh salad that Jayne taught me how to make - with almonds, mandarin oranges crunchy noodles, green onion, celery and an oriental dressing. For the grand finale, Clay, Derek's brother, made bread pudding with a banana bourbon sauce.
We were fat like Santa.