Before and After

Hubs and I aren't super domestic people. I not only lack crafting and decorating sensibilities, I am also pretty bad about making a concerted effort at celebrating anything; birthdays, holidays... you name it.

 

So it was with nervousness as well as excitement that I contemplated spending our first Christmas in a house with a fireplace and mantle(okay, our flat in London had a fireplace, but we filled it with candles and the mantle had yet more candles sitting atop empty bottles of booze).

 

Aaaanyway, the mantle was very important this year because my mom completed the needle point stocking she made for The Boy and gave me the stocking she made for me 35 years ago.

 

Mom has started work on TheLittle Boy's stocking and I got Hubs a stocking, black of course, so he wouldn't feel left out.

 

Then when it came time to purchase a tree we pulled back a bit from being too terribly festive and bought the biggest of the small trees we found and used it to shield the presents from The Boy.

 

For the first time ever The Boy anticipated Santa's arrival and we had to make an effort stay up later than him, stuff stockings and leave presents quietly. Having a glass of champagne helped while he danced around in his room well past bedtime asking where Santa was.

 

When he finally settled down this was what was left, but less blurry.

 

Christmas morning was a flurry of Lincoln Logs, various toy vehicles and Egg Nog French Toast Casserole.

We were supposed to go to a fancy restaurant for Christmas dinner. My dad made reservations for me, Hubs, the boys, my BFF, his girlfriend, my dad and HIS girlfriend. He found out on Christmas Eve that the reservation was actually FOR Christmas Eve, so we ended up having Christmas dinner at my dad's house.

It turned out really well. The boys were spoiled, dinner was good, we got to spend time with my globtrotting BFF and I got to wear my new plaid trousers that everyone thought were "Christmas pants."

Everybody laughed a lot, The Boy was surprisingly well-behaved and The Little Boy slept a fair amount. I just couldn't believe that The Little Boy's first Christmas has already passed, that The Boy so big and they're both so beautiful and precious.

Makes me all misty-eyed, but these curls make me feel better.