Christmas Eve

Our tree is still up on this here January 5th.  I think that's ok as long as my neighbors still have their lights gleaming at night.  Meanwhile, this is my mantra:

I will finish these Christmas posts before our tree comes down, I WILL.

Last year I never even posted about Christmas at all.  It's a shame, because our baby was pretty darn cute at Christmas last year.

  

How did that teeny little bubble of love and sweetness turn into a 20-lb running ball of love and sweetness and talking and mayhem?  I don't know.  I guess I'll never know.  How did my hair go from blonde to weird orangey brownish?  I don't know.  I guess I'll never know.

But I do know that the walking, talking, running ball of mayhem we have now is still pretty darn cute.

  

I love Christmas.  I love that we lots of family.  My mother-in-law's birthday also happens to be Christmas Eve, so we get to celebrate her birthday, too.  We started our Christmas Eve by driving out by the Bay to see our first side of the family.  We ate Chinese food, Groovy's famous crab dip (what is Maryland Christmas without crab dip?) and birthday cake.

Yes, guys, this was the best of them.  I promise we will do a REAL family shoot in the spring!

Then, Sweet Pea got to play with her beloved cousins.  Honestly, we have the best nieces and nephews.  I so wish they lived closer.  

 

I also have an awesome sister-in-law!

I glanced down at one point and Sweet Pea had gotten herself into
her biggest cousin's shoes.  She was yelling, "Ooosh!  Oosh!"
Which is how she says shoes.

My favorite.

Next, it was over-the-river and through the woods (literally) to Nana's house.  My family has a weird tradition of gift opening on Christmas Eve.  (Santa still comes on Christmas morning, filling the kids' stockings and bringing them a special gift or two.)  I love the magic of Christmas Eve, of the warm family room, the glow of the lights in the darkened room, the slowness of it all as we enjoy each gift passed around and opened.  Everyone watches each person open a gift one at a time, starting with the youngest first.  

Bean is wearing a dress I wore when I was five, and Sweet Pea is wearing
Bean's first Christmas dress.  My dad is wearing children and presents.

I love the excitement.

Oh thank you, Nana, for my doll house toy!

Presents?  Loved them.  Wanted to open everything.
That tearing sound is just so satisfying!

We have another newish tradition of eating my mom's special lasagna for dinner.  I told Sweet Pea it was pizza, she looked at me and said, "Pi-ZHA?!" then went to town.  I gave her my mushrooms.  She ate them.  

 

 

I was pretty much super excited to give her this "More Please" Baby Alive doll.  You feed it and it talks to you.  I thought it would be a little old for her and that she'd get it as time went on, toward spring maybe.

 Nope!  She got it right away, and fed that baby doll all night long.

 Bean's current obsessions are La La Loopies everything and Calico Critter anything.  She got a La La Loopsie outfit, so (of course) we had to try it on Sweet Pea.

Pink is her color.

  

 

 My parents splurged on each girl and got them each their own play kitchen.  Such a hit!  Thanks, Nana and Bampa!

 

 

So that was our precious Christmas Eve.  I will hold those memories near and dear for generations to come.

(Please excuse all of these low-light, uncropped, unedited snapshots.  Someday, I will get a full-frame camera and lenses.  Someday, but not today!)

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