Christmas Really Did Come Early!

It's kind of funny the people you know and how you know them, and how you part from them and then sometimes how you get to see them again. (Did you get all that? Write that down.) Case in point:

I grew up in the same ward the Lowe's/Conti's lived in back East. Julia (not pictured, so don't look for her) and Nikki and Sierra all live within about an hour of us. I knew Janice and Galen were back in California, but I heard they were spending most of their time in SoCal with Janice's aging parents. So when I arrived at Julia's for a Christmas potluck, I was so excited to see Janice stirring something in the kitchen! She and Galen both ran right up to us and gave us all hugs! And to think, I almost looked for a sitter for Madie! They wouldn't have met her! Nikki came too, as did Sierra! It was awesome to see them all again. We already have talked about getting together for a camping trip in Yosemite next summer.

We celebrated Christmas as an immediate family yesterday and today. We opened presents yesterday morning--it was cute to see Madie try to figure out the box that held her dress. (The dress, by the way, is ADORABLE. I think it's the cutest piece of clothing she owns. I'm so happy I found it!) Mike and I each had a gift for each other and little stocking stuffers. Tonight we had the traditional oyster stew. I made some eggnog--even better than last year, I must say. I'll have to post the new-and-improved version on Cookin' Up A Storm. Mike asked me why we have oyster stew for Christmas Eve. 

"I don't know. My mum's always made it, and her mum does, and so does my dad's mum, so...I guess that's why."

Honestly, I thought everyone did until I was in my teens and realized "some turkey and some mistletoe help to make the season bright" was true for most people. (Never related to that. But "turkey" fits better than "oyster stew" I guess.) Looking around at different sites, I see that in Lithuania it is traditional for the main Christmastime meal to be eaten on Christmas Eve--that's what we've always done--so that makes some sense, considering Mum's family history. Then again Dad's family does the same thing, and there's no Lithuanian there. Anyway, when I type in "oyster stew Christmas dinner" into Google, lots of sites pop up and act as though everyone has it every year, and why would anyone think of having anything else. Any thoughts there? What's your Christmas/Christmas Eve dinner tradition and do you know how it got started? Does anyone have any more information as to why some of us have oyster stew?

On a totally unrelated note, here's a cute little picture of Madie with her puppy "backpack" on. I think her expression here is just like her Uncle Tyler's. (The fact that they both have Nana's eyes adds to the effect, I think.) Anyway, I think it's cute how she and the puppy are looking right at the camera!