This is the first year in several years (really, the first since I picked up knitting again as an adult) that I didn’t knit any Christmas or Hanukkah presents. I didn’t necessarily plan it that way; it just turned out that this year I’m doing a lot of knitting for weddings instead. And somehow, despite bringing home the hap blanket and the socks I started a few weeks ago, I didn’t knit a stitch while I was at my parents’ house for Christmas. I did eat, however, and that’s mostly what I’ve got pictures of.

Every year my dad bakes Czechoslovakian hoska bread. And it is delicious.

Boh, laying in front of the beautiful tree at my parents’ house on Christmas Eve. Both of my parents wrap the prettiest presents I’ve ever seen. (I did not inherit this gift.)

A little bit of work in between Christmas celebrations. Mom and Dad napped; I made a pot of coffee and finished a book. (And it didn’t feel strange. Apparently this is how we roll. Or something.)

And then there was bear meat. This was a gift from my friends J. and E., the sweet folks who got married in the North Carolina mountains this fall. I brought it home so my parents could help me decide what to do with it — and help me eat it. Chili was prepared, and I was sent home with a hearty container’s worth for my freezer. (And it was delicious.)

I can’t believe it is already the end of the December! Here’s hoping your holidays have been filled with family, friends, love, and the warmth of handknits.