Best wishes to everyone celebrating Christmas. As my annual column on Christmas Torts notes, 90 percent of Americans celebrate Christmas (though only around half treat it as a religious holiday). We are also celebrating Chanukah (Leslie is Jewish) so this is a great twofer celebration for our family with the overlapping of the two holidays this year.

I am in Chicago with the family for Christmas with my 92-year-old mother Angela.  We are getting a dusting of snow for a white Christmas but the weather has been warmer than usual on our visit (in the 50s).  Last night, we had our tradition of Cioppino soup with family.

We have 37 this year and I just put the beef in the oven. I cook the beef as well as the Yorkshire pudding, horseradish. and other traditional dishes for the dinner.

While the Chicago Bears, Cubs, and Blackhawks have left many of us crushed this season, our spirits are still high for the coming year and a sweep of their respective championships in 2020.

The Turley family wishes everyone a happy and safe holiday. I will be toasting our blog family tonight and give thanks for the wonderful community we have created at this site.

Best wishes,

Jonathan Turley