It's always hard to be away from family during the holidays. This was only my second Christmas in 38 years that I was not with my parents and extended family in Milwaukee. However, I must admit that Christmas Eve day was one of the most memorable holiday celebrations I've ever had!
We left the house at 11:00 am to head up to the mountains about an hour away. We were meeting Sooze, Didi, Pia, Alena, Matt, Sandra, and Matt's parents, who are here visiting. At about noon we met at a parking lot adjacent to a snow-shoeing trail. It had been raining during the drive up, but thankfully we were high enough up that it wasn't raining when we began our 40 minute hike to a chalet where we would share fondue, meats, and wine. The surroundings were beautiful and it was fun watching the kids play in the snow. Sam was having fun hitting Matt with snowballs!
The chalet was actually a farmhouse with a huge farm kitchen. We sat in the kitchen around two long tables with benches. It was so cozy and just one of those experiences you'll never forget. The kids loved it and even had a surprise visit from Papa Noel who presented them each with a bag of chocolate, peanuts, and clemantines. The adults got a kick out of Santa who may or may not have been hitting the kirsch in the back room. A little while later the same man invited us outside to see Zoro the horse. The four older kids stayed outside and built snowmen while the grownups enjoyed some torte and finished up the wine.
We hiked back down all moaning because we were so stuffed! At 6:30 we headed back to Sooze and Didi's for the evening. The kids monitored Santa's progress on the internet and we had them in bed by 10 pm. This worked in our favor as they didn't awake to open presents until 8:00 am!
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