12 Delights of Christmas Tag!

A little white ago, I was tagged by Miss March for this timely Christmas tag! Thankfully, I was able to get it done just before Christmas, so enjoy! (But first, scroll down to #7 for some Christmas music links to set the mood!) 

1.  A favorite Christmas tradition?

Hmmm...I think our church's annual Christmas Eve concert is a great tradition. It really puts me in the right mindset for Christmas Day, instead of focusing on the secular Christmas things like presents and parties -- of course I'm still thankful and I still enjoy those things, but having that church service the night before, full of Christmas hymns and the truth of Jesus' birth, really helps me not to get carried away in the world's way of celebrating. 

2.  Say it snowed at your domicile, would you prefer to go out or stay curled up inside?

Depends on the type of snow, you see...if it's fluffy, powdery, dry snow, then I love to get outside and just walk in it!! Especially if it's a cloudy, gray day -- the kind of snow where everything is silent, but your voice seems like it could carry a hundred miles, when everything is just a blank white sheet over the world is the BEST! But if it's too sunny and the snow is all soggy and wet, then nah, I'll stay inside, thank you very much! 

I took this picture a year or a few back...my favorite type of snow!

3.  Tea or hot chocolate?

At Christmastime? Hot chocolate, definitely. (But I do have some peppermint chocolate tea that's pretty tasty as well...) 

4.  Favorite Christmas colors (i.e. white, blue, silver, gold, red and green etc)?

Ooooh...tricky question. I really like the buffalo plaid/woodland Christmas theme, and that's half of how our home is currently decorated... but we are leaning more toward a red/gold/white theme, with plenty of evergreen sprigs around to liven things up! That scheme can include our old plaid stuff and incorporate lots more new things.

                        

These are all, sadly, not mine...but they are the kind of "palette" I like to work with

5.  Favorite kind of Christmas cookie?

Very good question. I would say "all of the above," but that would kind of defeat the question...I really like gingerbread. I don't eat it often, but homemade ginger cookies are absolutely delicious. (Honestly, any homemade Christmas cookies are absolutely delicious...) 

Some cookies from last years' baking day with my in-laws! :) 

6.  How soon before Christmas do you decorate (more specifically, when does your tree go up)?

Anytime after Thanksgiving is fair game! I usually refuse to decorate until December 1st, but as long as Thanksgiving is over, it really just depends on when I feel like decorating. 

7.  Three favorite traditional Christmas carols?

    1. "Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel" 

    2. "In the Bleak Midwinter" 

    3. "What Child is This" (yes I know Miss March already chose this one, but it deserves to be chosen again!) 

    4. There are SO MANY MORE! But I shall limit myself. 

8.  A favorite Christmas song (i.e. something you might hear on the radio)?

"The Christmas Waltz" is a good one! I like a lot of classic, Sinatra-esque Christmas music, so this is probably my favorite rendition: 

9.  A favorite Christmas movie?

The Nativity Story. I know some people who debate about this one and whether it's really good or not, but I think the depiction of Mary and Joseph as such real and tangible people is really excellent. Maybe the theology isn't the greatest, but as far as "Bible movies" go, that one is by far my favorite. (But my other favorite is It's a Wonderful Life, if you were curious...) 

10.  Have you ever gone caroling?

Yes I have! I used to carol a lot with my family -- for a few years, we had a tradition of caroling for our immediate neighbors and handing them a plate of goodies. 

11.  Ice skating, sledding, skiing, or snow boarding?

Ice skating!!!!! I could skate for hours on end if someone let me...which reminds me, I need to get my skates sharpened! 

Also not me...but those skates are similar to my own. 

12.  Favorite Christmas feast dish?

I have a soft spot for sweet potatoes...which may sound weird, but it's true. I have always loved sweet potatoes/yams...so there you have it! 

Thanks again to Miss March for tagging me! Since I've been kind of out of the blogging loop, I don't know who has already been tagged and who has not, so I'm not going to officially tag anybody...but feel free to steal this! Consider yourself tagged if you would like to answer these, and let me know! :) 

Merry Christmas!!! 

The ski lodge gingerbread house that me and my husband made! :)