Just Keepin' it Alive...

... the Christmas Spirit, that is. By posting about Christmas at the end of February. I couldn't not post about it though... it's Christmas! So, even though it's 80 outside now (in general, but not today, it's pouring!) and even though I'm sure the topic of Christmas is sooo not interesting at this point... and even though it actually makes me pretty sad to think about my last Christmas... here are our memories from Christmas 2010.

A mentioned in previous posts, we went to Utah and Idaho in hopes of spending Christmas with my Dad. And while we weren't able to celebrate Christmas Day with him, he was certainly felt in our hearts and all-encompassing in our minds. We love you, Daddy.


All of Rich's siblings and their families decorated gingerbread houses together. This was Dom's first gingerbread house. He loved it!

(Too bad Mama is a gingerbread Nazi and probably ruined all the fun by being obsessive about the frosting and skittles.) Here are all our masterpieces.

Ours is in the bottom right corner. (Not that you wouldn't have guessed... it's pretty much the super-est, right?)



With Daddy passing on the 21st, Christmas eve found us instead at Rich's parents house in Utah. The boys scored super-cute pajamas from Nana...

...and we all watched the traditional, "Mr. Magoo's Christmas". Complete with everyone singing their specially assigned parts... with vigor. ;)



We even scored some more naked-in-the-tub-with-our-cousins-pictures.
(Because those never get old.)

Christmas morning at Rich's parents house was full of cousins, grandparents, brothers, sisters, and love. Here's Dominic, monopolizing Damon's present from Nana and Papa Innes.

Later that day, we headed back up to Idaho and spent the night at my Dad's house with his wife. It felt good to be there, where he'd been just days before. After the funeral, we drove back home to Arizona and tried our best to have our family's Christmas with the kiddies. We had Christmas in the morning, and New Year's at night. :)

Here's Dom "Christmas morning", discovering his stocking.

He was really fun this year. He finally "gets it"!

And here's Dame, adoring his M&M candy cane.

Stockings...

Dame got a big boy chair to match the one Dominic already had. This was the best gift we could have gotten him. They LOVE to sit by each other in their chairs and watch "Choo choos" and "Yo-Dabba-Dabba". ;)

I got Rich a body pillow. Lame, but OH so needed. This nifty flock of feathers has replaced ME... the human body pillow. Seriously. Even when I was pregnant, I'd wake up in the middle of the night with a 30 lb. leg draped across my body. What in the heck?

We were so lucky to be able to share the experience with my Mama and her sweet hubby. They are snowbirding this year... and so they're only 20 minutes away! (Until March when they go back home to Idaho.)

Here's my Christmas present. It's the FIRST year that Rich and I totally suprised each other with our presents. We are usually kill-joys and we go Christmas shopping together, pick out our own presents, and wrap them in front of each other. This was waaaaay more fun.

Dame opening puzzles, with a little instruction from Dom...

And here it is! The boys scored a new train table.

This thing has already endured hours and hours of play.

This Christmas morning, Damon said his 3rd (1st and 2nd were "Mama" and "Dada") word when they came downstairs and discovered their new table: "Chooo, chooo!" Love it. :)

Well, there it is... for posterity, right? Forgive me for the oh-so-tardy-posting as of late. I'm catching up, I'm catching up, catching up...

"Merry Christmas!" No, "Happy New Year!" Er... Valentine's Day??? Wait, what month is it?