The singer revealed details about her first 'blended' holidays with her husband and their kids.
After finally tying the knot in July, Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck spent their first Christmas together as a married couple. And the singer "couldn't let the day pass without sending a little holiday cheer" and sharing some details about how the two -- as well as their "blended families" -- spent the holidays together.
In the latest installment of her newsletter, "On the JLO," Lopez revealed that they went all out after the pandemic put a damper on a longtime tradition. "For the past 8 years we’ve been doing a Christmas Edition Taco Tuesday, where we get together and dress up and sing Christmas carols. During the pandemic that went to the wayside, so this was the first time in a long time we were able to get together with people that we haven’t seen in forever," she wrote. "The party was filled with family, friends, colleagues, and people we’ve known from over the years. We sang and danced and had the most amazing time!"
That event, which she dubbed their "Hummingbird Christmas Party," saw the likes of Kim Kardashian, Doja Cat, Eric André, Vanessa Hudgens and Jane Fonda in attendance. It also featured performances by Lopez and Stevie Mackey on the piano as well as Affleck joining his wife for a soulful rendition of John Legend's "By Christmas Eve."
The couple's holiday party came just days after ET learned how the two planned to spend their first Christmas as a married couple. Lopez is mom to 14-year-old twins Emme and Maxwell -- from her previous marriage to Marc Anthony -- while Affleck is dad to three children -- daughters Violet, 17, and Seraphina, 13, and son Samuel, 10 -- whom he shares with his ex-wife, Jennifer Garner.
"Ben and Jen have been having so much fun getting ready for Christmas," a source told ET. "Jen's favorite holiday is Christmas, so she always goes all out, but this is a really exciting time for them as a couple since it's their first Christmas as husband and wife."
"Ben and Jen picked out and decorated a huge tree with the help of their children. Their home feels festive and looks gorgeous with decorations and everything lit up," the source added.
The hummingbird theme, meanwhile, is the latest one Lopez picked to celebrate the holidays. "I wrote a song called Hummingbird for my new album, This Is Me … Now. To me, hummingbirds are messengers of love. They’re very agile—can fly forward, backward, and up and down. They’re also the fastest bird but they always have time to stop, eat something sweet and smell the roses," she wrote in her newsletter. "I identify with them, but more than anything, whenever I see one, I feel like it’s a sign from God that everything is going to be OK."
Lopez added, "So, I decided this year that the hummingbird would be a perfect theme. We have blended families, doubled the people, doubled the fun, doubled the love, doubled the presents and tripled the chaos!! …I wanted to have a tree in the house that was a hummingbird tree, reminding us that everything done in love and with love will always be OK."
When it comes to presents, ET learned that Lopez was ready to treat her husband, and "has picked out some things for Ben and wants to spoil him." Not only that, but in her newsletter, she shared some of the gifts she sent to her closest friends and family members – and how they reminded her of being at home, growing up in the Bronx, New York.
"One of the most comforting things I owned growing up, was a very itchy blanket. I know that sounds crazy," Lopez recalled. "We didn’t have a ton of money, but it was the blanket I had from when I was 6 until I was a teenager and I loved it so much. Lol. It was red, orange and white and it was my version of a Snuggy. Growing up in New York when it was cold, there was something so comforting about that warm blanket on my skin."
The only thing she's been able to find to replicate that memory "are these Hermes classic wool blankets, believe it or not," she revealed, noting that "sometimes Ben and the kids make fun of me because I like the itchy feeling of wool against my skin, but it reminds me of my childhood. I find them chic and a Bronx throwback at the same time."
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