Xmas countdown: Day 1

There are only 12 more days 'til Christmas. I am going to review my 12 favorite songs of the season (in no particular order) ... and also recount some of my best memories of this time of the year.

So, day 1.

Christmas in the Northwest

Oh, you know you love it. You do! You do! This song has always been the season opener for Chin & me. The first time we hear it on the radio on a given year, that is the first day of the Christmas season. If we happen to be apart when this song is played, we'd always try to get a hold of one another so we could share the moment. It's true.

I just realized the other day that I have spent more Christmasses in the Northwest than anywhere else in the world. Up until recently, I considered Da Nang, Vietnam my home. But really, my home is the Pacific Northwest. It is beautiful. It has most of the people I love. And many wonderful Christmas memories have been made here.

One year, I think it was in 2003, my sister GT bought matching yellow pajamas for all the gals and matching blue plaid pajamas for all the guys. A simple act that really brought the family together, I felt. I still have the yellow pajamas. I wore them while I was pregnant/in labor with all three kids. Whenever I wear them, I remember that wonderful Christmas when we were all together...too much food to eat...taking over an hour to open up all the gifts...kids staying up until 2am...family going out the next day together for breakfast (and discovering that Anh Hien's car was stolen).

Christmas at the Le residence...2003?

Maybe I'm getting all the different Christmases all mixed up. But it doesn't matter. All I know is that we did have some wonderful Christmasses together as a family. I miss those days.