Home for the Holidays

For the Christmas holidays, I went home just like I had done the year before. Although it's one of our longest breaks and could have been a time to make a special trip, the idea of traveling through Europe in winter and being in a foreign place on Christmas did not sound at all appealing to me. Of course, I also wanted to go home and spend the holidays with my friends and family!

Opening presents with the family

As always, our Christmas consisted primarily of lots of family and food, including my mom's famous pecan pie and an alligator made of marzipan that I brought back from Spain for my sister Elizabeth. It was great to have almost everybody under one roof and to spend quality time together.

Elizabeth's marzipan alligator

Mom's pecan pie

I also paid special attention to the Christmas decorations around town and inside friends' homes, as I wanted to take pictures to show my niños back in Spain. I made a presentation about Christmas traditions, complete with videos of Christmas lights that people synchronize to music, and they all loved it, although their ultimate takeaway was that "people of USA are crazy."

Christmas decorations

Naturally, part of my time home was also spent hanging out with my college friends, who I only get to see two or three times a year now that I've been living so far away. We met up in Chapel Hill and went to some of our favorite restaurants and cafes and had a lovely day chatting and catching up. Unfortunately, it felt way too short, and I really wished I could have had more time to hang out with them. But at least we were able to get a good number of us together and make the most of what little time we did have!

With my friends at Weaver Street in Carrboro

I did meet up again with some of them for New Year's Eve, which has become something of a tradition. At least, for the past few years we've been meeting at Sarika's house and having a delicious potluck dinner, watching the ball drop and staying up late playing games and chatting.

Our New Year's feast

This year, Sarika also surprised us with a special activity she had planned. She had read about doing a craft party where you decorate an old coffee jar and create a "Memory Jar." You then keep it and throughout the year write down special memories on paper to put inside. At the next New Year, you open the jar and read all the memories as a form of reflection. She had all kinds of paints, stickers and other supplies and we had a great time decorating our jars like kids in arts class!

Decorating our jars

Finally, the next morning I made Swedish pancakes for everyone and we had a huge, delicious brunch to ring in 2015! It was a wonderful way to end an old year and start a new one, in the company of close friends.

Mama Clark serving Swedish pancakes on New Year's Day