Merry Christmas & Overnight Berry French Toast Bake

The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other.

Burton Hills

The last Christmas I had with my Mom, Dad, Bro, and Sis was 2012. Almost 6 months later, to the day, we were all back together for Mom’s celebration of life. Yikes, just typing that brought a lump to my throat. I still can’t believe that she is gone.

OK, I just had a good and healthy cry😆 now back to what I was saying… That was such a great holiday. My Sis was pregnant with SweetPea and I think my sister-in-law was pregnant with PrettyP but we just didn’t know it 😂, I had just had SydneyBean and HBear had a full Castle Christmas for the first, and only time of her life. Mom and I baked for weeks! We made fresh pasta, casseroles all ready to go, appetizers filling up a full freezer and baked goods filling up our other giant freezer! The entire lead up to Christmas was so magical.

I look at that Christmas as such a blessing ❤️.

HBear, SBean and I listened to a new playlist on Spotify called new Christmas songs of 2021! One song stood out to me, Evergreen by the Pentatonix. The lyrics really hit me…

There is a box in the attic
We take it down each year
And pass through generations, lights and souvenirs
From the ones who came before us
The reason why we’re here
Singing all these carols and spreading all this cheer

Don’t forget, never lose
All the joy that’s made for you
I want to tell you a story about my mother

How she would give up everything for her daughter’s drеams

For all the weight she carried, she ain’t tired
I spend my whole life trying to be more like her
So on every Christmas Eve
I thank my family tree
Yeah, a mother’s love gave us everything
Oh, a mother’s love is evergreen

These lyrics hit hard. They made me think. My Mom, and Dad, made our childhood Christmases SO SO special. The lead up to Christmas was magical. There were crafts, concerts, sledding, ice-skating, music, movies, and family gatherings.

Christmas 1985

They worked so hard to make sure that our holiday was filled with love so that we would have memories of these times when we got older and we would make sure that we did the same thing for our children. These traditions were passed down and now Ninja and I work hard to make sure that our children have a wonderful Christmas and make the same types of lasting memories.

On Saturday my Sis and the whole family came over for some cookie decorating. Such a simple activity but just having the kids running around, an impromptu sleepover, throwing out the menu plans and just ordering pizzas, and Dad and J spontaneously making their way upstairs for a drink… made my entire Christmas. I couldn’t stop smiling. These are the days I will remember forever.

Thank you Nana and Poppy and Granny and Grandpa for helping to make the holidays so special. From garlic filled dinners, to picking up Nana’s baked goods from the train/bus station, to leaving (rein)deer poop on the fresh snow and jingling bells to make our imaginations run wild. Thank you Mom and Dad for my roots. For teaching us the importance of tradition and family and for answering EVERY question in EVERY Santa letter for over 25 years 😂. Thank you MIL and FIL for raising your family the same way and for making Christmases SO special every year, through loss, COVID and distance.

I feel the love this year like I haven’t in years. I feel the spirit of Christmas like I did back in 2012. Huh 2012/2021. Interesting 😆. Anyways,

From my family to yours, Merry Christmas! I hope you ALL have a happy & healthy Christmas filled with adventures & love that will fill your memory banks enough to last a lifetime 💛.

Check out How Was Your Week, Honey? Episode #255: Is It The Dog? HERE! Topics: Reindeercorn, gin fizz, Christmas vacay, Sex & the City, Tiger & Charlie, hockey update, house training, tree cutting, Xmas Would You Rather? Xmas magic & movies vs film.

Check out Our Liner Notes Episode #192: Christmas at the Movies HERE! This week, Matt and Chris welcome me to their show to discuss the music of some of our favourite Christmas films!

One of the daily challenges I have posed in my Body & Mind Fitness group this month was to make a festive breakfast… for dinner! I rarely look at holiday breakfasts because I always make my Mom’s Xmas Breaky so this was a new one for me. We loved it! It was so easy and so delicious! This would be perfect to make on Christmas Eve and just throw it in the oven while opening presents and you will have a delicious (and healthy) breakfast hot and ready!

Berry French Toast Bake
Adapted from Joyous Apron

1 loaf of French bread
8 large eggs
2 cups milk
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 cup strawberries sliced
1/2 cup frozen berries
1-2 tablespoons powdered sugar

Grease a casserole dish.

Cut bread into cubes and add to casserole (fill up to ~3/4).

In a large bowl, combine eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and brown sugar. Whisk mixture and mix well. Pour mixture into casserole.

Slice strawberries. Top casserole with strawberries and frozen berries.

Wrap the casserole with saran wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours, or up to overnight.

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.

Bake for 35-40 minutes.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Despite this being on Christmas vacation… we have been busy! SBean and Oliver have been busy warming up to each other, HBear has been practicing her jazz solo, and Ninja and the Sparkles team have been shovelling the abnormal amount of snow that we have received in the past few weeks. Maynard brought us a family holiday puzzle to work on over the break, we watched Home Sweet Home Alone, Papa gave Oliver his very own ornament, and we made homemade cards for our neighbours and teachers! Ninja and I celebrated no more work for 2 weeks!!!! By having a flight at Slackwater Brewing and by wrapping up a storm. Oliver has been settling right in and LOVES being around his people 💗.

This weekend my Sis and family came over for some cookie decorating! It turned into a sleepover, a SITC: And Just Like That binge, a pizza buffet and a LOT of drinks! It was amazing! The next day we went tree hunting! The weather was perfect, the skies were blue, and Oliver had a BLAST, oh and so did we 😜. We brought home our tree (which is stunning) and listened to the Charlie Brown Christmas album spin on the record player as we decorated our tree with homemade ornaments with our Xmas train chugging around our feet 💛. To end our weekend the Girls had friends over to bake buttertarts, peanut butter marshmallow squares, and hot cocoa macarons. Then it was birthday party time and I went out with my PreschoolBesties for a little holiday catch up. I am so lucky.