Christmas and Washington Trip

We celebrated many times for Christmas this year, and enjoyed each one very much. We started with Christmas Eve at my mom's, with a very special dinner, stuffed pork loin, salad, creamed onions (my favorite!) asparagus, and more. We shared Christmas with two of her good friends as well, and sat by the fire, had dessert, opened gifts, laughed, and had a great time! Then we had our Christmas together, waking up and having hot chocolate while we opened stockings and gifts before we headed to Tim's parents house. We had Christmas with them, and cinnamon rolls, enjoying the sunshine, yet still crisp and cold weather. A few hours later we headed back with our bags packed for the airport, and visited with Tim's grandparents, and had an early Christmas dinner! Off to the airport after that for an evening flight to Washington, to visit my dad and step-mom, and have my first baby shower. My brother Korbe, and my sis-in-law, Traci surprised us by showing up a day early and were already at the house when we arrived from the airport. We did Christmas again the next day with all of them, as well as my step-brother and his wife, who are also pregnant with a baby boy due in February! Sunday, my step-mom put together a small shower for me and my aunt and cousin, dad's cousin, and a couple friends of theirs celebrated with me and we had a nice brunch, cake, and gifts. It was very nice!
div>

Tuesday, before we left, it started to snow! We made it home delayed, but safe, last night to a very happy puppy! It was a wonderful Christmas, and we can't wait until next year!

Heirlooms

In the last few weeks, we have been fortunate enough to receive a couple special items from family. The first, being Eddy the Elephant:

Eddy was a gift to my Grandma Gail from her daddy for her 4th birthday back in 1930. It was during the Depression, and my Great Grandpa wanted to buy it for her, and my Great Grandma was upset at him for spending the money. My Grandma gave him the name Eddy the Elephant, and used to hold him by his trunk, and being only four, his feet used to drag on the ground (as you can see from his "scars"). She has been carrying him around for nearly 80 years now, and when I was up there visiting at the beginning of this month, she told me she wanted me to have him for Gracie if I wanted. I was so excited to bring him home and put him in her room. He used to play music, and one day, I would like to find a place where I could see if the music box inside him could be restored, I would love to hear what song he played that my Grandma Gail listened to so very long ago.

The second special item we have been given was this cradle. My dad made this cradle 28 years ago for my oldest cousin, Erin, before she was born. She and my Uncle Rick and Aunt Nan enjoyed it while she was a baby, and then held on to it all these years. I have one too, but it's up in Washington at my dad's, waiting to be enjoyed by Gracie when we go to visit. So I received a call from mu Uncle Rick a few weeks ago asking if we would like to use Erin's cradle, and especially since my dad made it, I was delighted. Uncle Rick got it out and spent a lot of time getting it back to the condition it was in when it was enjoyed by his baby girl. We took a drive to Chico a couple weeks ago to pick it up, and now it is in our room waiting for the baby who will occupy it in just 3 more months.

We are so blessed to be surrounded by things that have stories and memories.

Slumber Party

So Tim told me the other day when we were organizing the DVDs that he had never seen The Polar Express. What?!! Being Christmas, we thought it the perfect time to make sure he doesn't go any longer without seeing one of the best Christmas movies (next to Miracle on 34th Street and Home Alone) So last night, we decided to drag the guest bed mattress out to the living room, light a fire, have some hot chocolate and cookies,

and enjoy some Christmas movie magic and sleep out in the living room by the fire...

Update!

I can't believe next week will be number 28...where the time has gone! I feel so blessed to be pregnant at Christmas-time, there is something so special about it, knowing that the tree decorating, cookie making, and present wrapping next year will involve a 9 month old crawling around! Tim's brother, Tony,

was gracious enough to take pictures of us for our Christmas cards (they were taken at almost 25 weeks...) and Lacie didn't make the cut this year for our card...so I decided to post the rejects, though they are still very good pictures.

Christmas break officially began yesterday at 11 am, with my 6th graders finishing their first finals ever, and not being okay with the fact tht the week before Christmas no longer means parties...what??!! Wait till they get to the last week of school in May and find out their "End of the Year" party has been replaced with more finals...

That means 16 glorious days off, beginning with a trip to the Auburn Country Christmas with my wonderful husband tonight... there's nothing like holding hands walking down streets filled with carolers, smells of kettle corn, and crisp air. Then it is a few days of finishing prepping for Christmas, baking with friends, visiting family, hopping on a plane Christmas night to go to Washington, my first baby shower, and time to rest from all the fun before going back to school January 4th!