Photo Bite: our holiday table

In my family, much of the holiday celebrations revolve around a centerpiece of our home: the dining table.

There was a lot of celebrating going on this season: Thanksgiving with some extended family, plenty of variations of Christmas meals (Eve dinner, Day brunch, Day dinner, Day-after lunch). And I noticed how the small things about our dining table made the bigger things — our family, our conversation — more special.

So, appropriately for the day after Christmas, today’s Photo Bite is a highlight of some of my family’s holiday tables from this season.

Thanksgiving: white tablecloths, accents of color in the candlesticks, pretty bottles with sprigs of fresh lavender from the garden, bottles of chilled water for easy refills:

Christmas: holiday dishes, regal candlesticks, cloth napkins, jingle-bell napkin rings — and lots of sweet treats for dessert:

How were your holidays? Does your family or group of friends celebrate with any special touches?