Christmas 2011

Christmas came more quickly than usual, I swear. Thankfully, we didn't feel any great urge to be excessive in our Christmas prep or buying, and we kept our plans simple (read "relaxed"). Note: we have been obsessively playing with our new smart phones (our Christmas presents this year) as the pictures below reflect.

 Christmas eve morning we went out to breakfast at the new Sabrina's located in University City. The place was surprisingly quiet, and O.K. especially good (maybe there's a correlation there...).

Then there were cookies to make (with the plan to leave a few out for Santa).

 Oscar helped with the most important parts, like cleaning the beaters,

 cutting out the cookies with cookie cutters, and later, sprinkling the colored sugar on top of the icing.

 Yum!

 We watched the old 1946 version of "Twas the Night Before Christmas" and then put Oscar to bed. He was hoping to see Santa (and got a little sad about it), but fell asleep in his usual easy way. Then John and I got busy wrapping a few gifts and setting up his "big" present--the crane. We put out the other gifts from family and friends as well.

 In the morning we were too busy enjoying the moment to get a picture, but O.K.'s face was priceless as he came down the stairs. He whispered "a crane" and plopped down to play, completely oblivious to the rest of the gifts or the stockings hanging up. John and I were able to get coffee and relax while he built and rebuilt (and built and rebuilt) a clock tower to demolish with his new crane. 

 After a relaxing morning and some breakfast, we opened our stockings and other gifts. The presents from family were so thoughtful, and Oscar took a lot of time appreciating each one as it was opened. There were puzzles, the game Zingo (yes, he's just about ready to play games!), bath crayons, and books, among other perfect gifts. It was probably good it was just us three, because the time he spent exploring each gift would have been too much for anyone other than his parents.

Personalized puzzles from Gus and Gum were a big hit.

 And Oscar announced that a book called "Trucks" from Uncle Pete and Aunt Linsey was his "favorite book" (officially his first "favorite" anything). Later in the afternoon, we skyped with John and Erin (and Sage!). It was so fun to connect with some family. It was also the moment we had to admit that we were still in our pajamas. In our defense, we've all been sharing a nasty cold, so we decided to be okay with that.

Of course, John and I received some lovely presents too. I got five new scarves (from different people) and had to try them all on at once.

We made and ate delicious food (including nuts cracked by the squirrel nutcracker left by Santa) and enjoyed our time together. Throughout the day I was reminded of how thankful I am for my "boys" and for the restful time I get to spend with them during this holiday break.