For the final edition of the Photo Blogging Challenge for 2024, the theme is Holly Jolly. The phrase Holly Jolly seems to originate with a Christmas song written in 1962 and most famously performed by Burl Ives in the 1964 stop-motion Christmas special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

So the phrase Holly Jolly is pretty much the same age as me. Over the past six decades, western societies have come to equate having a “Holly Jolly Christmas” to mean celebrating with people you love, sharing warmth and happiness. Including our small gathering of three on Christmas Day, we enjoyed a Holly Jolly holiday, with video chats, in-person visits earlier in December, lots of baking, board games and Lego building.

One of the things that I most enjoyed this Christmas was putting together a couple of gift baskets. One was for my parents, who live in BC. And the other for my parents’ neighbors/friends/landlords, without whom my parents would be in assisted living. It was fun shopping for goodies and tucking homemade jams and cookies into each basket. Shout out to my brother for playing Santa and making Christmas Day deliveries. 🙂

Other highlights included:

1. Nearby Nature

Mother Nature joined the holiday celebrations, dumping a bit of fresh snow a few days before Christmas. Thanks to some beautiful sunrises/sunsets, she got in on the colour and light shows that are so much a part of Christmas. We enjoyed this particular sunset over the Canadian Rocky Mountains when we were in Calgary for an early December weekend.

2. Rudolph Walk

At winter equinox, sunrise in our part of the world isn’t until almost 9 o’clock. For early birds like us, that would mean a pretty late start to the day if we waited until sunrise, or even dawn, to get out for a walk. Instead, we head out at the usual time and use a red light to highlight any icy patches. Opting for a red light preserves night vision. And in December, it’s kind of like going a a walk led by Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer!

3. Christmas Baking

I did quite a bit of Christmas baking this year. We enjoyed it right up to the New Year! And I shared with extended family, too. A few of things of note this year:

1. I learned a hard lesson. The first time I baked Chocolate-Rasberry Jam Thumbprints this month, I forgot the sugar! After our 25 year-old suggested I put out all the ingredients before I start mixing, I had no more “oops” baking moments in the run up to Christmas. The second batch of the same recipe (pictured) turned out really well.
2. I tried a new recipe: Cardamom and Orange Shortbreads. Everyone who tried them liked them. And our “foodie” 28 year-old and his girlfriend asked for the recipe so they can try it. The recipe doubles easily when baked in a 9 x 13 pan for a few minutes longer than the recipe directions.
3. Mr GeoK does NOT like meringues. I made fancy, red-striped mint meringues. Most of them were shared with family. I’ve made a note in my recipe binder to take these out of the Christmas rotation and to try lemon meringues instead. Meringues are nice to include in the mix because they are dairy free and gluten free, which makes them shareable with just about everyone.

4. Family Board Game Nights

We’ve enjoyed weekly family board game nights for a couple of years now. Games in regular rotation include Wingspan, Undergrove, Apiary and (occasionally) Terraforming Mars. Our Christmas Eve game of choice was Undergrove. As usual, our 25 year-old won and I came third! It’s always fun. 🙂

5. Christmas Day Lego Building

Ever since our kids were little, and starting with Duplo, we’ve had a family tradition of Lego building on Christmas Day. This year was no exception. I am still working on a complicated farm truck. Mr GeoK has almost finished his Technics car. And our 25 year-old finished building the Ornithopter from Dune on Christmas Day! Meanwhile, in North Carolina, our 28 year-old and his GF built a Lego poinsettia on Christmas Eve.

Two final thoughts before I wrap-up.

1. One thing that made me feel especially Holly Jolly between Christmas and New Year’s Eve was FINALLY finishing my blog post series about our first week of guided hiking in Scotland all the way back in May 2024! I still have to get to the second week, plus our expedition to Greeland, but I’ve got some good momentum going and should finish before Valentine’s Day.
2. For our December get together, my neighborhood ladies’ book club chose Christmas at the Vinyl Cafe, by Stuart Mclean. It’s a wonderful collection of humorous short stories. Many can be found on YouTube and would make great listening while driving to/from the ski hill, hockey arena, Christmas dinner, etc. I highly recommend it for family listening across the generations. And it’s a fun Christmas gift for Stuart Mclean fans or anyone who would appreciate a little dose of Holly Jolly.

That’s it from us this month. Now it’s time to head over to host PJ’s blog and spread a little Holly Jolly by reading and commenting on other participants’ photos. While you’re there, please consider joining us for the 2025 run of the Photo Blogging Challenge. All you need are 5 photos and a blogging outlet. Accompanying text is basically optional. The January theme is New year, new me!

Whether or not you opt to join, I wish you all the best in 2025 – good health, time in Nature and a little Holly Jolly throughout the year. And if something made your 2024 Christmas particularly Holly Jolly, please share by leaving a comment. I don’t always respond, but I truly appreciate everyone who takes the time to leave a comment on one of our posts.