Christmas Planning

As I may have mentioned in the past, I'm the person who hosts those family get-togethers in my family. Birthdays. Thanksgiving. Christmas.

I'm in denial at the moment. I know there are tons of things that I could be doing at this very moment, but I have a problem with procrastination.

At least I have the Christmas meal all planned. Here is the menu:

• Curried Pumpkin Samosas (for pre-meal nibbles)
  
• Soup (provided by my sister-in-law... she hasn't yet decided exactly what she'll make so it'll be a surprise)
  
• Apricot-Glazed Spiral Ham
  
• Sweet Potato Casserole (for the sugar-eaters)
  
• Mashed Butternut Squash (for the non-sugar-eaters, I'll be flavoring this with cinnamon, diabetic maple syrup and a little Grand Marnier)
  
• Ambrosia Salad
  
• Quinoa and Broccoli
  
• Potato Dinner Rolls and Butter
  
• Leche Flan
  
• Drunken Fruited Cake
  
• Sugar-Free Meringues
  
• Beverages: Red Wine, Mead, Apple Cider, Bottled Water, Coffee and Hot Tea

I also want to make some Banana Cookies and No-Bake Oatmeal Cookies. Mmm, they look so good.

I've asked the family to arrive around 3pm, with the meal (buffet-style) planned for four o'clock. Although we always say grace before our meals, I think I'll ask my brother to read Luke 2: 1-20 so that we're certain to keep in mind the real reason for this celebration.

Then we can dig into the gifts.

I did quite a bit of gift-wrapping today. My signature style is a gift with pretty ribbons, piks and/or pinecones adorning plain brown paper wrapping. I've wrapped Christmas packages this way for years now and it says Christmas to me.

I hope your Christmas plans are well underway!