We went to El Dorado for Christmas this year-- which I assume will be our last El Dorado Christmas. It wasn't sad but a little different. I have loved attending Christmas Eve Church at St. Mary's my entire life and hope this one tradition Brian and I will carry out each year. Obviously not at St. Mary's but at our church. It's beautiful and calm and the perfect start to Christmas Day.
Brian said I had something like gorilla hand? No, what did he call it?! No idea what's going on here. It almost looks like he has some kind of deformed hand that is abnormally long reaching around me!? hehe, no idea.
We actually opened presents Christmas Eve this year-- another first-- since we were traveling to NWA on Christmas Day. It's a 5 hour drive and we wanted to be there early.. especially since we had Penzo Christmas this evening.
Luckily this was the last gift-ish. I've learned-- don't give Brian a book at the beginning of Christmas. Or you've lost him the rest of the time!
So Christmas Eve was a blast. We got up Christmas Day and traveled to Tontitown-- we made it a little before 2. I do love a good Christmas at the Penzo Casa! We had cheese ball and a meat tray waiting on us and rounded out the night with my favorite homemade spaghetti.
We opened gifts-- every Penzo minus the Virginia ones-- and it was great. Then we moved on to more important things-- like Spoons. This is a time honored tradition in the Penzo House. We credit my mom for getting this started many years ago. Many tablecloths have been torn apart, spoons bent and gone on to meet the trashcan, there has even been a whole table broken. I actually inherited that table (with a minor little fix) in college-- so 2005. This game has been going on more than half of my life.
I actually didn't play the first few years because these people are ferocious... looking at you mom. And the game is so long! But then one year I played...
I'm "A" in case you were wondering. And then I won the coveted golden spoon.. this was actually at Thanksgiving. Because I came back at Christmas and dominated! And then I let Brian in the family... and everything I worked so hard for went down the drain.
This year was like every other-- things broken, there was blood, bent spoon(S!) and a champion.
We actually use a quilt on the table now. Grandma has found this is the best way to not ruin anymore tablecloths.
So I know you are all dying to know who the 2016 year champ is.... unfortunately my mom won last year and the golden spoon is packed. We weren't able to do the ceremonial hand-off but I'm proud to say the spoon stayed in the Johnston family. BRIAN is the 2016 champ!!
So there you have it-- Christmas was a blast. I really enjoyed getting to see so much family over the span of a week or so. I really love this time of year and hate that it's already over. Until 2017.....
XOXO
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