Xavier's First Christmas
Greetings to everyone and Merry Christmas! Christ is born!
It's been a fun-filled few days. From having our first flooding of the basement in the new house to going to church and forgetting the diaper bag (which carries the all-important bottles of formula) to family portraits, tree decorating, an impromptu visit from one of my uncles to a wonderful Christmas dinner, we've had a good time!
Tuesday morning we discovered the connections to the washing machine were not as leak-proof as they should have been. So, thank you, Jesus, the carpet installation was delayed!
Tuesday night, after Xavier went to sleep for the night, the four of us, Rochelle, Kathy, Rebecca and me, loaded the stockings hanging over the fireplace. After that, we four moved to decorate the Christmas tree. I hung the lights. Rebecca and Rochelle hung the ornaments (I did have to reposition the CU ornament, which Rochelle purposefully hung in the back). Kathy watched on from under a blanket (she's used to Phoenix temperatures).
Xavier started on solid foods out of necessity Christmas morning. We realized as we pulled into the church parking lot we forgot the diaper bag. Xavier held up, but near the end of the service decided he wanted to eat and he wasn't going to take no for an answer. Rebecca brilliantly thought to try him out with a slice of banana. He seemed to like its flavor, but it did not fill his belly as fast as he wanted.
Breakfast after church, then on to the stockings then to that which, as if by magic, appeared under the decorated tree. A turkey went into the oven, and as we watched the latest version of "The Great Gatsby" the house filled with the aromas of our evening feast! Turkey, home-made cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, home-made stuffing (stove top, not in the bird), mashed potatoes with gravy (no giblets, PTL!), home-made apple pie, just to mention a few of the items simmering away all afternoon.
Near the end of dinner, one of my uncles (we live only a few miles away we discovered) and his wife dropped in for a while. We could not entice them to join in the meal (they had just finished one themselves), but my aunt could not resist the stuffed mushrooms and neither could resist a slice of apple pie.
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| With the lights up, Rebecca and Rochelle hang ornaments. | The Tree with the wrapped gifts which magically appeared soon after the last ornament was hung. | The stockings all hung by the chimney with care. |
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| Chellie shows Xavier his stocking | While everyone was distracted by a conversation, Xavier showed us what we should be doing | Xavier gives something from his stocking the required taste test |
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| Xavier examines a teething toy | Stockings emptied, everyone inventories their booty | Rebecca helps Xavier open Aunt Kathy's gift: a kick and play piano |
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| Xavier taste tests his first giant Lego blocks | From Xavier's POV, one of Aunt Chellie's gifts was the complete works of Winnie the Pooh. She also got him a little table with all sorts of things to poke, push, open and close, most all of it making noise. | The women in the kitchen working on the evening meal. For my sister's benefit: "What a shame, there are three women in the kitchen" (it's something of an inside joke) |