My Christmas

Hello everyone! I hope you will forgive me for the little break I took from this blog over Christmas. It has been a very, very busy time.

My husband and I got some lovely gifts for each other, which we exchanged on the 23rd (we are not very patient). My husband bought me some new clothing, which is always useful for me since I am always buying second hand. Sometimes it is nice to get something new! I also got a new board game called ticket to ride. Have you ever heard of it? Friends from church came over to our house with that game a while back and we loved playing it. So my husband bought me the Nordic version of the game (which I was so happy to see had my town in Finland on it!).

 On the 24th we drove to Chicago to visit my family. We were at my dad's house on Christmas Eve, where we got to visit and enjoy a busy evening with lots of family and good food (my stepmother is from Belize and is a great cook!)

Me and my husband enjoying Christmas Eve

With my biological sister, 2 stepsisters, and 1 sister-in-law

We then spend Christmas day and the 26th at my mom's house. It was a great (and chaotic) time with my family celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. We had 12 people (my mom and stepdad, and my 3 siblings and their families) and 4 dogs, which were busy barking or chasing each other most of the time.

With so many people, there were lots of gifts, which took over 2 hours to open

I received some new Yankee candles with lids to extend their burn time (I have a thing about smells, and nearly always have a candle burning

My nephews are cousins and best friends

A headlamp is a great gift for any kid

Even 4 lbs. Mona got a new dress

Cuddles with my nephew, Mona, and my sister-in-law

My husband and our nephew

My brother and my husband and their beards (they were doing a contest, but my husband got a late start)

So all in all it was a very successful Christmas. My husband and I got to read Luke together and celebrate the birth of our savior, and our time with family reminded us how truly lucky we are.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas as well:)