It's a Holly Jolly Christmas

Hello there! The holiday season has kept me too busy to write anything. My sibs and I’s new business venture has made me all tied up this last quarter of the year because we have to learn everything ourselves from inventory to marketing which was quite overwhelming for all of us not to mention the holiday rush. My sissy and I decided to decorate our house for Christmas quite late this year which was sometime around last month. Last year, we decked the halls as early as October if I’m not mistaken.

This year, we decided to name our Christmas theme ‘Winter Wonderland’ which consists of only four simple (but festive) hues: Silver, White, Teal & Blue as it was quite easy to put together and 'simple' often goes a long way. Everything was pretty much Pinterest inspired as usual since we’re on a budget because we still have to buy presents and all. We decided to DIY pretty much everything by using most of our Christmas ornaments from last year and we just bought white and blue spray paints, throw pillow cases, few yards of white faux fur, blue Christmas lights and last but not least, additional blue shimmery ornaments for touch-ups instead of turning into a hoarder and keep on buying new ornaments every year right? Anyways, I’ll be adding links here in case you want to decorate your house next year on a budget or is vying for the blue, silver and white theme as well. I know the holiday season only happens once a year but it’s still best to make it count and make it worth remembering.

Last year our theme was gold, red and green with a little rustic and shabby chic feel so this year we were inspired by the winter season which does not happen in a tropical country like ours so why not travail to the north pole or east coast this time eh? The theme also extended to our dining hall which has always been the focal point since that is where the Christmas and New Year’s Eve dinner will be held of course. Surprisingly, we were able to pull it off and we're happy with the outcome even if one of my sibs threw in quite a few off colored placemat pieces which almost ruined the whole ensemble lol. Good thing the DIY-ed blue ribbon and silver and blue twigs I cut off from one of the tree ornaments saved the day.

Anyhow, it still turned out to be one of my favorite Christmas dinners even if it’s just the three of us because it’s also my twin sister and I’s first Christmas as vegans! Our other sib isn’t vegan so our Noche Buena menu comprised of both vegan and non-vegan dishes. My twin sister came up with the menu whilst I did the cooking and last minute touch ups for the table setting then our other sissy shopped for the Christmas toppers/ornaments. We did our ingredients shopping separately since one of us three isn’t vegan yet although we’ve been inoculating her for a while now hehe. And oh, we also bought a kilo of faux meat from the vegetarian center (yes it’s the only place that sells them here otherwise online) because we have to at least have one viand and the rest were pasta, graham float, etc. We used the faux meat for the Afritada, coconut cream mixed with confectioner’s sugar as a cream replacement for the graham float and of course canned fruit cocktail. There are actually tons of vegan holiday recipes you could come up with and it’s not true they’re all pricey because you always have the liberty to pick the not so costly ones as there’s always a vegan counterpart for everything, you just have to research online or ask you’re vegan friends.

Even if t' was just the three of us for Noche Buena, my sibs and I still decided to push through with our little Kris Kringle thingy and waited for 12MN to open our presents for each other just for kicks since we do it every year anyway. We had our Christmas dinner as early as 7PM and watched tons of Christmas movies to stay awake until midnight. We had our wish lists written on a piece of paper so that our 'Secret Santas' won't have a hard time. My twin sister gifted me an emoji pillow whilst our elder sister gave me a cute Unicorn notebook which would be oh so useful for someone like me who often jots things down. Nevertheless t' was still a holly jolly Christmas! 

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