That’s the big night for us Polish folks. It’s not Christmas Day, it’s the eve. We have our big dinner, and we open presents afterwards. This year I was lucky enough to have my grandmother visiting from Poland. So her and my Mom spent days cooking prepping for the meal. And when we arrived, nice and early, things were already in full swing.

Everyone amused themselves in various ways. Some played on the computer, one little girl took my camera and got an education on the back focus function and how to take pictures with a professional camera, and our dog ‘supervised’ in the kitchen and made sure that any scraps weren’t poisoned by eating them.  Presents were opened, and thoroughly enjoyed – though one particular little girl was spoiled rotten! But she certainly didn’t complain.

Dolls, hand knit sweaters *though she didn’t care about those*, stickers, Trolls, socks *she cared even less about those*, a Chewbacca toy, and a full Rey Star Wars outfit complete with her staff.  She made out like a bandit. And though she showed little interest in them on the day, she’s since been proud of her funny socks, and has loved putting on her new sweaters and showing off her hat saying, “I’m always going to wear it, Mama.”