Christmas Eve Eve

On December 23rd, I hosted our fourth annual Christmas Eve Eve. I just love this tradition and have so much fun with it every year. This year, I got a little help in the kitchen from Hudson and Carlie and Dan stopped by for a quick visit while I was cooking. They played with Hud for a bit and I got to chat with them which was nice because I don't see them all that often. 

This year Rachelle and Brandon joined us and almost my entire family made it (we were only missing Tyler) which was a really nice change from last year. I decided to change up the menu this year and made Chicken with Green. It is chicken smothered in a goat cheese, leek and herb sauce with roasted red potatoes on the side. It is delicious and the red and green colors were very festive. For appetizers I made salmon pate and a cheese platter. I tied red and gold ribbons around my mason jars and added red straws to make them look Christmasy. I made a red punch that Lauren had made in Australia. It was delicious!

I of course went overboard with desserts just like I do every year. We had peppermint bark rice krispie treats, brownie bites, rice krispie treats (shaped like snowmen, gingerbread men, and christmas trees) and my favorite: peppermint red velvet cupcakes. I also made peppermint hot chocolate, yum!

The highlight of the night though was the Christmas Lights at Candy Cane Lane. I have always loved looking at Christmas lights, but now that we have Hud it is even better. He especially enjoyed it this year, which made it so fun for everyone. 

One house in particular took it to another level this year and we were beyond impressed with the street in general. They really put a lot of work into it and it makes for a wonderful family outing.

After the light viewing, we came back to the house for more hot chocolate, desserts and present opening. It was such a fun night and I am already looking forward to next year's event!