It just wasn't Christmas....

until we had our traditional English Roast.
I realize now, that I grew up in house hold full of traditions. Every year was the same. You ordered Dandelion and Burdock from the milk man along with a black forest gateaux that you always ate frozen because you forgot to thaw it out. You dropped off gifts Christmas eve and had Grandma's to dinner Christmas Day after church. Dinner was the same, turkey and all the trimmings, roast potato and parsnips, brussels that only a couple of us ate and of course plenty of Yorkshire pudding. Listened to the queen, actually made fun of her mostly and watched Eastenders before Noel Edmunds came on and had us all bawling like babies. Boxing day was for cousins to play and Uncles to drink and New years was always a huge party.
Since moving to the US and having my own family, I learned the very first year that most celebrating happened Christmas eve and the next day was nothing but opening gifts. We have tried different things. Gone to a movie in the afternoon most years and sometimes snowboarding, a trip downtown to stay in a hotel for fun, we've evn tried to start the Christmas morning church tradition. This year was Disney and I already reported on that but I still seemed to have a sense of in completion.
Then I realized, it just wasn't Christmas until we'd had the roast dinner.
So we did it new years day,here are pictures for proof.



Christmas crackers a must have

The favorite "yorkshire pudding" which I only know how to make in one size.