Christmas Eve

Hang tight while I work to post all of our Christmas pictures. I took over 500 pictures during eight different holiday get-togethers. I'm trying my best to narrow it down as much as possible!

While our Christmas was absolutely wonderful, it didn't go without a few bumps and bruises. The first one came the day before Christmas Eve. Exhibit A: Christmas Goose Egg #1:Christmas Eve morning started with a little cookie baking. We were hoping Santa enjoys M&Ms as much as we d0!
Later that morning, The Stovers came to exchange gifts and have lunch. They gave Austin the neatest railroad sign for his room. (I can't believe I didn't get a picture of it!) It was great to spend time with them while they were visiting from California. We miss them so much!
The girls sort of ran circles around Austin. He didn't know what to think about all of their hugs and kisses. As always, it was hard to say good-bye but we know we'll see them again soon!
Santa's helpers when to work when Austin went down for a nap. We thought we had two hours to get gifts wrapped and put together before he woke up. Little did we know that he'd sleep for 4 1/2 hours, making us two hours late for Christmas Eve dinner with the Kiefers!
We finally arrived to the traditional meal of appetizers, including the Kiefer traditions of shrimp in ailoi sauce and eggnog. It was time to dig into the gifts as soon as dinner was finished. Austin was excited to find a potty chair and Lu Lu the Fur Real cat among many other things.He was super excited when he saw the Mega Blok table from Uncle Jonathan. It's the perfect addition to the blocks he got last year. Grandma and Grandpa Kiefer were excited about the 2008 Christmas memory book we gave them.After gifts, it was time for cookies and a special treat that Jocelyn left us in July. The caramel liquor was very tasty!
The Kiefers and Cookie Monster....
Austin turned into quite the night owl over the holidays. Long naps led to long evenings!We thought he'd be out on the way home, but of course he had other plans. We waited up for Santa for a few minutes before finally hitting the hay.
Exhibit B: Austin fought Lu Lu's box...and unfortunately Lu Lu's box won. It's hard to see in this picture, but he has a small cut above AND under his right eye.