by Carolina Dream Chapman

Created on: November 03, 2007   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

Over the hills and through the snow it's off to Grandmothers house we go.

Every year our family gets together at my grandparents house to enjoy a wonderful Christmas breakfast. We get up early at our own homes to open our Christmas presents. Then we get ready and head over to my step grandparents house for breakfast.

The Drive:

The drive to Pop and Bubba's (the grandparents) is among the joys of our Christmas morning tradition. They live close so it is only a short drive through the country. On our way we always watch the woods as most often we are blessed to see deer or wild turkeys or other forms of wild life. It is especially beautiful when there is snow on the ground.

Preparation:

Bubba generally does all the cooking every year. I can only remember one time that she asked us each to bring something. All other years she fixes our complete traditional breakfast herself. By traditional I mean the breakfast that has become a traditional Christmas breakfast for our family.

The Menu:

Every year we have our own traditional breakfast as I mentioned earlier Bubba generally fixes the complete breakfast by herself. The menu includes the following foods, which have become family favorites.

* Breakfast casserole: This is a yummy casserole, which includes eggs and bacon, sausage or ham or a combination of the three meats.

* Fruit Compote: This is a delightful warm fruit dish.

* Biscuits and Gravy: It just wouldn't be Christmas breakfast without this family favorite.

* An assortment of home baked breads: Such as pumpkin bread, banana nut bread and some type of spice bread that has chocolate chips.

* Drinks: which include coffee, hot tea and orange juice.

During breakfast, we all sit as a family around the table that Bubba has decorated for the holidays. Pop sits at one end of the table while Bubba sits at the other end of the table and the family sits around the table between them.

The table is positioned by a large window that overlooks the cliff that drops down to the creek below. We all enjoy looking out the window and enjoying the beauty of Christmas morning. Bubba has many bird feeders in the trees outside the window so we always get to see a variety of birds.

Conversation:

Conversation around the Breakfast table on Christmas morning is a joy for all. We talk about a variety of topics then eventually we all settle in and enjoy hearing stories from the past. A past that is before any of the rest of us were born. We enjoy hearing Pop and Bubba tell us stories of their younger days and even Christmas stories from their own childhoods.

After breakfast, the men go sit around the fireplace and visit while the women clear the table and put the dishes in the dishwasher. After the food has been put up and the dishes are washing in the dishwasher we all gather in the living room to open presents.

Time for Pictures:

After the presents have been opened we usually get out the cameras and take a variety of pictures. The all time favorite place to pose for pictures is in front of the fireplace.

Christmas Breakfast is a much-loved tradition in our family. We hope that the tradition continues as it is for many years to come.

I have recently found out that Christmas breakfast goes back for many years. Bubba's mother used to have Christmas breakfast and then Bubba carried on the tradition. Next it will be up to my mother and then someday maybe even me to carry on this beautiful tradition.

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