Have Yourselves a Merry Little Christmas

Christmas dinner: fried ham, mashed potatoes, carrots, gravy and lingonberry sauce from Ikea (all made on a hot plate)

Katherine's first attempt at German pancakes. A little brown, but still good.

We wish each of you a very merry Christmas this year. Today we thought about Christmas traditions, as I'm sure many of you did as well. Traditions each of our families have, traditions they both have, and new ones we want to start this year or next year (our first normal Christmas). 

Here are some we fondly remembered today. 

First are the Pinsent family traditions. Katherine's favourite is the colouring book and crayons on Christmas eve. Then the Persson family. Eric's favourite is one present and one person at a time.

This Christmas was our first as a married couple. We had a great time, and have lots of plans for future Christmases together. Here are some K&E Persson traditions that started this year, or are planned for coming years:

Vienna Christmas mugs

new 1/2 pyjamas

buy each other a new ornament each year (then the kids when they come along)

Elf and the Grinch

bake a Christmas apple crisp

crepes or German pancakes

Christmas quilt (made with love by Katherine on her new sewing machine)

Girls have a girl day and Boys have a boy day (or finish their shopping separately, whatever needs to happen)

What did you do this year? Or some things you thought of that you're hoping will stay in your brain until you get to do them next year? Write them down!

Wherever you are and however you celebrate, we hope you felt love and shared love with those around you and our savior Jesus Christ this holiday season.

Prague, Czech Republic - store window

Paris France - Notre Dame

Krakow, Poland - Krakow History Museum

Krakow, Poland - Krakow History Museum

Paris, France - Sacre Coeur Basilica

Paris, France - cathedral

Barcelona, Spain - town square

Barcelona, Spain - Sagrada Familia Basilica

Vienna, Austria - Schonbrunn Christmas Market

Extraordinary Merry Christmas

It’s an extraordinary merry...
very, very, merry, merry Christmas!
Gonna stay with you til Santa grants my wishes.
Got my halo on I know what I want
It’s who I’m with.
It’s an extraordinary merry Christmas!

It's going to be a Christmas like no other. Some things are sad, but most are very happy. It's a very very merry merry Christmas because of it's extraordinariness!

Barcelona, Spain

Here's a little taste of Barcelona. More to come...

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

So, funny story...Remember how we were supposed to be in Paris today?

Last night we were supposed to take a train from Vienna-Munich, then one from Munich-Paris. The train left from platform 6 in Vienna at 6:14pm. So around 6:10pm we got on the train at platform 6 and by 10:40 we were a little worried because we weren't there yet and our connection was scheduled to leave at around 10:45. So we asked the guy "does this train go to Munich?" and he just said "no it doesn't" and that was that. Darn. It ended in a place called Innsbrook. Does anyone know where Innsbrook is? It's still in Austria! So I freaked out and got really upset and we tried really hard to figure out where to go from there, and how to get to Paris. It was about midnight when the McDonald's we were settled in closed up for the night and left us in the station until the next train that would get us closer to Paris would come at 4:45am.

We found out there was a train that went back to Vienna, leaving at 1:15. At first this seemed like the worst idea ever to me, but after sitting in the cold station for a while and not having many other options when Eric suggested we go back to Vienna, all I could say was "I just want to go home...and Vienna's the closest we have right now". So we did. We got back on the train at 1:15 and were scheduled to get back into Vienna at 7:14. Luckily we actually scored ourselves a sleeping cabin. There were tons of empty ones so we asked for one and this random guy on the train, super nice guy, convince the conductor to let us stay in his cabin free of charge. It was lovely. We even got breakfast in the morning. (It was an Austrian breakfast: tea, a roll and jam, but it was free food non the less.)

So 7:14 we are back in Vienna; around 8:00 we are back at home and in bed again; and about 11:00 we wake up to do it all again.

---

As it turns out, I am so so happy to have been in Vienna today. We got to do all the things I wanted to do to make it feel like Christmas. With us being away from home until the 24th, with no decorations in our house and no way to make a big dinner, it was beginning to feel not at all like Christmas to me. Today fixed most of that. We woke up, got out of the house around 1, and bam bam bam we saw 5 Christmas markets here in Vienna. The Vienna Christmas Markets are so fun. They are beautiful and filled with great smells and festive fun. We went in search of something specific. Each market has a booth or two that sell what's called holiday punch; basically different flavours of juice warmed up and filled with alcohol. (That's not what we wanted though, our holiday troubles are not that depressing to me.) They come in these great mugs, which you pay a deposit for, but usually never bring back. I wanted a set of them really badly for Christmas this year. Eric and I don't have a tree or anything, so we don't have any decorations. We have no "our first Christmas" ornament. These mugs are going to replace that for us. Every year we will drink from these mugs and remember that we were in Vienna for our first Christmas, and it was wonderful. So we went from market to market scoping out the options. 

The Rathaus (old city hall), is near our house and that's the first market I went to a month ago. I feel like this is my market. I have a special place in my heart for it since it's close to home, a building we've always like and wanted to go inside of, and my first Christmas market experience. Their mugs are really tacky though. We went to 4 other markets to take a look at the competition. 

Schonbrunn Palace

Karlsplatz

Museums Quartier

University of Vienna

All their mugs were pretty, and had really nice designs, but they were just like out of a museum gift shop. They had nothing to do with Christmas, which was the whole point. They were just plain mugs with pictures of buildings or artwork on them. So we went back to the Rathaus and looked at those ones again. We liked them so much more this time, after seeing the others. They have so much character and are so festive. They're tacky, yes, but they are Christmas for us now. We went to one stand that had them and all they had was punch with alcohol, and the drinks are so expensive. The next booth had apple cider that looked okay, but again it was so expensive. We decided that if it was possible, we would try just to buy four mugs, instead of two mugs filled with overpriced juice. That lady said no we couldn't so we moved on to one more. She let us buy them, no problem! So now we have a matching set of four really tacky and really fun Vienna Christmas mugs. Now we can have friends over to share in our new holiday tradition, or just and extra mug or two for when one breaks. I am so happy. I've been wanting these and talking about them for a really long time, and I finally got them today. And bonus: we found clementines on sale at the super market! 

the Rathaus

Christmas can come now, and I'll be ready for it!

Getting Ready For...

K:

Today is the last day we have any commitments here in Vienna. Eric is, as I speak, writing his last exam for school. Tonight we get to run away to vacation land and it could not come at a better time. I think we are both just looking forward to escaping life and spending a couple of weeks together before Christmas comes, and then New Year's and then home time. These are our last 12 days to just take off before the business sets in. So here is what we planned for our 12 Days of Christmas.

Barcelona - Spain

Which I am so much more excited for than I thought I would be. So excited! And it's warmish too, so added bonus. 

I'm hoping we make it to these next two, but the trains have changed so we'll have to kind of wait and see what happens I think. But these would be nice to see:

Nice - France

 Eric's parents have been here and really like it so we're going to try it out too. Also warm, and boasts a gelato shop with 96 flavours. I've already started trying to decide on which ones to try.

Monaco | Monte Carlo

Something about cars and Formula One something, I don't know Eric knows the detail.s I'm just up for the warm weather and beautiful beaches.

These are definite yeses that we are very excited for!

London - England

 I have always wanted to go here. My mom and her family are from England and here we will get to meet up with one of her aunts who I haven't seen in a long time, and Eric will get to meet her. I think she;s great, and I love family. It will be wonderful.

Last but not least...I'm sure you know what's coming. Think of somewhere romantic you would want to go for Christmas with your new husband...

Paris - France

I don't know what to say really, I just can't wait. And actually, we'll get our first few glimpses of it in about 24 hours from now because we take an overnight train there tonight and then go from there to Barcelona tomorrow. So tomorrow is the Paris Sneak Peak before the three days we get to really enjoy it.

And that is what we are spending all day today getting ready for. Lots to do before we go. Lots of exciting around this house today. Hope Eric is doing well on his exam right now. Soon we will be off and away on our last European adventure.