Our 24th of December : A Photo Story

Up at 8 a.m., we must buy our Christmas Eve dinner and it would be a one hour drive from our place. Yes, we went to a fish pond and got our forellen; the photo shows the fish pond where they catch the fish depending on the order. The best seller were the carps. A man stands within the pond, uses his hands to catch the fish, asks the costumer if he approves and brings it inside to be cleaned! What a job especially it is freezing outside and I dont want to imagine how cold the water is. Here in Germany, aside from goose and wild meat, the most popular Christmas dinner would be fish.

Getting bored in their car seats for almost two hours, the kids wanted to stretch their legs. After bringing the fish home and in the ref, we decided to drive to the mountain and have our traditional Christmas stroll. The kids are happy that they could play outside.
Since the mountain is along the way to oma and opa's house, we passed by for a short visit and to wish them a Merry Christmas. Of course, we must not forget the grandparents who lives alone. I am sure they are also looking forward to visits from their family at this time.
A short break at home before going to the church. In which the kids enjoyed hearing and watching the story about the Baby Jesus. And all kids present each got a blessed candle to bring home.
After the mass, I quickly walked back home while the kids with papa took the long way home. I needed to create a Christmas atmosphere before they come. Actually, I turned on the CD player for Christmas carols, turned on the Christmas tree lights, lighted the Christmas wreath candles and wrote the names on the gifts. The Christkind already left when the kids arrived home. They saw the gifts, but as tradition goes, they had to sing Chrismas carols before they opened their gifts (see above photo).
And here's our Christmas Eve's Menu:

Appetizer: Raw veggies such as bell pepper, carrots, cucumber and cocktail tomatoes with cheese dip

Main dish: Baked forellen fish filled with mushrooms, peas, lemons and carrots (see photo)

Side dish: Boiled potatoes with parsley and butter; rice

Dessert: Lemon cake with Straciatella ice cream

We opened a bottle of red wine and sekt (sparkling wine) to share between my husband and I. The kids got their apple juice as sekt in a sekt glass, too and their water.

It was a full day but we had fun. The kids got to play with their new toys before going to bed at 9:30 pm. And for the first time after so many years, my husband and I got to stay up late to watch tv. Actually, what we enjoyed more is that we got to relax and talk comfortably with each other without being interrupted by the kids. I guess, that's another special gift from the kids, to us :D