Merry Christmas!

Doesn't the house look great this year?






OK, I should probably mention that this isn't my house. It's my parents' house. But I can always pretend it's mine. (The snow kind of gives it away - they've had over two feet in the past few days, while it's 50˚ here.)

We've had a wonderfully peaceful Christmas. We went to a lovely church service with my sister and her family yesterday and then rushed home so I could make our big Christmas Eve dinner: standing rib roast with a horseradish/crème fraîche sauce, smashed potatoes, steamed French green beans, and my mom's famous rolls. For dessert I made my dad's ice cream pie (Ben and Jerry's New York Super Fudge Chunk in a chocolate cookie crust) and a gingerbread cake with spiced crème anglaise - but after dinner we were so tired and full that we never got around to eating either one. This morning we all slept in until 8:00 then went downstairs to open gifts. Sawyer got way too many presents from his grandparents and aunts and uncles (and some from us too) including a tricycle, Backyardigans dolls, an authentic looking pirate chest, the Fisher Price Little People airport, a Leapster 2 with games, Backyardigans DVDs, a Hot Wheels racetrack, and LOTS of books. Eric gave me a KitchenAid Professional 600 mixer, which I have been coveting for a long time, so no dog house for him this year! I gave him the Matrix trilogy on Blu-ray and a new Playstation game he asked for. We had a big breakfast of my mom's Christmas Morning Casserole (too much food!!) and spent the rest of the day playing with toys. It's been really nice to be home with just our little family - no stressful travel or family drama. We love being with our extended families, but it's also nice to experience the holidays in our own home together. We've had a lot of opportunities to contemplate our blessings and the foundation of our spiritual lives.

Merry Christmas everyone!