Christmas 2013

 

Nonni and Kaushal arrived on Christmas eve. It was so good to see them! We had a lovely evening filled with Thai food and bourbon-spiked apple cider. The ice storm had left the world sparkling and surreal, as though everything was coated in glass. A beautiful scene for Christmas, indeed!

Christmas morning! Abigail is wearing a super adorable flannel nightgown that Granna gave her for her birthday. So old-fashioned!
  
Abigail decided to wake up at SIX O'CLOCK on Christmas morning, but Papa was a life-saver  and let Mama sleep in a while longer. We opened our gifts while waiting for Nonni and Kaushal to arrive. 

Mass was at noon, so we quickly ate our brunch of fried eggs on homemade sourdough toast and rushed out. Abigail was a doll at church, even despite taking a tumble headfirst off the pew at one point. The Mass was beautiful, and was made even more special by the presence of my mom. :)

It was nearly 2 o'clock when we arrived home, so I scrambled to get the ham in the oven. Then we opened more gifts!

 

 

After dinner, we enjoyed Nonni's tres leche cake, definitely a new favorite!

It was a lovely Christmas. Abigail received enough gifts to bolster her imagination without hindering it. (I am super picky about toys for her, as I think children these days are overwhelmed with way too many.) The polar bear and penguin rollie thing comes apart like a puzzle. Too cute! She especially likes the bear since she has a Christmas book with polar bears. The phone is a big hit, as it's pretty much the only electronic toy she has (thank you, auntie Peach!), and the farm animals have already provided lots of educational entertainment. We're working on animal noises...right now, all birds or bird-like creatures sound like a chicken. :)

These are 1945 editions of Winnie the Pooh, complete with handwritten inscriptions from a previous gifter. Sooo cool! Thanks, Nonni!

 

Not pictured is the play kitchen we will be getting her, if I can ever choose one! We are also getting her a little broom to help mama in the kitchen and a mini shopping cart. She currently pushes a little wire trash can around the kitchen, so we figured she deserved the real thing. :)

Merry Christmas!