TORONTO, CANADA
2017
And to conclude my series on Christmas Around The World, we end up here in Toronto. This year, we decided to be at home, with each other, and just do exactly whatever it is that we wanted. And that is exactly what we did. My wife just put up her vlog which features our whole Christmas Eve and Day, watch it here.
GROWN UP ACTIVITIES
We kicked off a brand new tradition this year - we built and attempted to design our very first gingerbread house. At first it turned out to be kind of kitsch (watch the vlog here lol) but somehow Monika managed to make it pretty chic and it matched our interior. Also, we literally just finished eating this house and it was pretty delicious. Yay to new traditions.
OLD TRADITIONS
Since we got married, we have taken Christmas as a time to reflect on our last year, and commemorate where we were and what we did. And what more fun then by designing some simple ornaments? We literally found these clear balls at Michaels for $1.50, and then stuffed them with different keepsakes for the year. The bottoms say "2017 Toronto", and we can't wait to keep building our collection.
GERMAN CUISINE
The first Christmas that Monika and I spent together (back in 2010) was also when my parents flew to Jerusalem and we quickly became de facto parents at the Charles household in Calgary. That year, we organized a very special German meal of Raclette - a meal enjoyed on Christmas Eve which consists of melted cheese eaten with boiled potatoes with small pickles and pickled onions. So this year in Toronto, we re-did that meal in a French fondue style, and we inhaled it!
MY GIFTS TO HER
Because she prepares + lovingly serves my every breakfast, lunch and dinner, for this Christmas, one of my gifts to my wife was breakfast on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. I definitely had a ton of help and guidance from her, but it was so fun to research recipes, buy groceries, prep, cook, and serve my handiwork. I am so happy with how it all turned out too - and so many of you messaged me asking for recipes! I am so flattered, and think that this will become a new family tradition for us!
Another Christmas for the books! And it was so pleasant to answer to no one except my wife, and eat everything we wanted and watch cheesy movies and unwrap gifts and design ornaments. What did you get up to this year?
