Luminarias

I guess we can now be official New Mexicans because this year we put up luminarias for the first time ever.  For those of you who are not of the Southwest, and therefore may not be familiar with these, they are paper lanterns (most commonly a paper bag weighted down with sand and lit with a small candle inside) that are traditionally set up on Christmas Eve, symbolic of guiding the spirit of Christ to your home.  (And even though I've lived here for six years, I just barely learned that. In fact, I looked it up just now so it would seem that I know what I'm talking about.  Thank-you Wikipedia!)  

Unfortunately, we were out of town on Christmas Eve, so we lit ours the few nights before we left town.  Kind-of random, but I liked them just the same.  I love how the flickering flame makes the light dance in these "real" luminarias, (as opposed to the plastic ones with light bulbs inside.)  It feels so festive!