Christmas in Camden

 Friday morning we got going bright and early to head down to camden! the kids were GREAT in the car. In the past it has been very hard (understatement ;) ) traveling with them and this year they were unbelievably easy to travel with.yahoo!!! maybe we have turned a corner! :) they loved playing with morgan, logan, grant and chandler. aunt becky is a teacher and brought all sorts of activities and things to keep the kids entertained and busy. this was so thoughtful and appreciated! :) the kids LOVED having all of their attention! :)

 granny came over for dinner. linda cooked 3 different soups and was very busy in the kitchen getting everything just perfect! meme spends lots of time and energy getting food on the table for everyone! it is always yummy!

 they LOVE their aunt becky! she knows just how these little minds work!!! :)

 there was a break in tradition this year because granny's christmas eve dinner was moved to lunch  to make sure everyone could get home to their own houses for christmas! so we opened presents at meme and poppy's the night before! It spread things out and the kids loved it! :) Mccoy was READY! he grabbed this present with his name on it and took off!

 Liza screamed... this is just what i wanted!!!
mccoy LOVED his razorback uni!
thank you meme and poppee!

and got a chefs outfit with pirates on it.

Meme and poppee got these sleds for them that were LOTS of fun. they pretended they were boats the whole time! :)

aunt becky and john got them silly string in their goody bags which was a HUGE hit!

mccoy LOVED granny's walker and really wanted it for himself

sweet aunt becky asked to read the kids books. i am telling you she knows the way to their hearts! :)

the next day we headed over to granny's house!
i have to start out by saying TRADITION is huge with the carter family. they have been doing the same. exact . thing since creation and it is so very important to them! there is something to be said about a strong tradition! :)

They have the same meal for both thanksgiving and christmas. before the meal starts they have shrimp with cocktail sauce and a creamy reumolaude (sp)  type sauce.
and the kids steal the crackers.

sweet aubrey.

There were 22 people at the table. Jason's aunt and uncle and their family and then Jason's fam are there.
Andy cooks a turkey!
It is d-lish!
I LOVE listening to the convo---family dynamics always interest me! :)
there are a lot of the same comments year after year which i always look forward to...
most of the time they say the turkey is better than last year! ;) and that it is very moist. :)

usually chandler and poppee and meme go down the day before and they set the table and set out the place cards! :) they want to make sure the silverware is an inch from the edge of the table. ;)

this kitchen is busy. the first year i came (maybe for easter when we were dating?) i asked if i could help and they told me i could peel the tomatoes. i locked eyes with jason in panic.
 because, how in the hell do you peel tomatoes?????? haha!
whats happening in this pic is that uncle bill is stirring the gravy. linda and alice are very busy preparing all of granny's food. she doesn't cook anymore but the daughter in laws still make her recipes for her! ;) sometimes granny approves....sometimes....well.
anywho..john's (poppee) job is to come down that week and help her stir and make the boiled custard....more on that later.  I usually walk around and ask if i can do anything and they always tell me no. I think they are as scared as i am that it will be another tomato incident! haha!
this year i got to help out a little with dishes after dinner. i think this means i have arrived!!! washing dishes is a very serious job. they have a tried and true system that has been happening for years. there is a bucket you put silverware in and there are jobs that everyone knows is their's. this year i helped with putting food in the trash bag.  i seriously was feeling pretty special with me new job!

granny wants a bite of shrimp. they say it down south "baawled" shrimp. that means boiled shrimp.
we like to talk about how big the shrimp are this year. ;)

so...continuing the food...
mushrooms

pies. Karo pecan and egg custard

dressing. and by the way..jason puts a jelly and gravy on his.

sweet potato casserole

broccoli salad

green beans..giblet gravy and ham.
to the right of the green beans is a NEW addition of colleens mac and cheese. I LOVE this mac and cheese and so do the kids. because it is a new addition....it sometimes doesn't get the love that the other food gets. and i don't think granny has ever acknowledged that it was on the table. haha.

poppe and grant. poppe doesn't like to look at the camera when you take a pic.

it is always a lil bit of a struggle to get the kids to sit down during lunch. i have learned to ask to be put on the end. ;) this time i did a little trick called trust. mccoy doesn't usually get to have knives. because, well they are dangerous and could cut your head off. but this time. just this once. i told him if he was quite and didn't tell anyone he could have it during lunch. this trust game seemed VERY effective. the fact that he had to keep it pretty quite really benefited us during lunch.

he is delighted that he is getting to do something VERY dangerous.  just delighted.

every year john cuts the turkey and every year they ask who is going to cut the turkey. they usually pretend that jason is going to cut it and then he gets mad and says he is not.

the picture below is significant because of one lil detail.
the ketchup.
the year the ketchup came out was a few years ago when becky's son logan politely asked for it to go with his turkey or something.
a hush came over the crowd.
you could hear forks drop and eyes meet.
nervous laughter.
in the 93 years that this meal had been served. never. had anyone. asked for ketchup.
but the meal went on.
and logan was a happy boy with his ketchup.
AND he was brave enough to ask for it the next year.
:)

granny with jason's cousin will and aubrey

and drum roll please!!!
the "bawwwled" custard. which means, boiled custard.
from what i hear...a LOT of love goes into this bawwwled custard. apparently you have to stir it just right so that it is not lumpy. after the meal is done and the ladies are in the kitchen. someone summons the bawwled custard and out it comes from the secret refrigerator.
look at jason. he is giddy. he is holding the coveted bawwled custard and can NOT hide his excitement. just can't. when he noticed i was going to take a picture he hurriedly took off the foil covering the top because...well, because he wanted his bawwled custard to look good.
love. a lot of love in that bawwled custard.

and that is the second pitcher.
because a lot of the men after they have tasted all the desserts and after their first helping say....pour me just a lil smidgen more of that bawwled custard.

mccoy found some cool whip in the kitchen

and where this is cool whip..there is liza
oh ya and that is linda's trifle that is oh so yummy!

and guess who is a true carter???

this guy.

and his bawwled custard

and yes...we have another true blooded carter and her glass of bawwled custard.

uncle john was so fun to wrastle with. mccoy kept running to him ans asking him to say RARRRRGHHH! again.

i'm glad liza and mccoy can experience this family that  has strength in their traditions. I hope for them to create their own traditions throughout their life as well! :) i'm also glad  they get to see people showing their love through the hours it takes to prepare a meal. May they never take for granted food on a table.
Thanks Carter fam for hosting us! :)