Holidaze

Guys!  It’s a new year!  I hope you’re off to a great start.  We had a great holiday, and now that things have settled down, I'm excited to share some of the highlights of our Christmas.

The holidays kicked off this year the weekend before Christmas, when my sister Anna danced in her last Nutcracker, the pinnacle of her ballet career.  My parents threw her and her two best friends a party to celebrate their achievement.  We like to make things special, so we rolled out the red carpet for the big event...

Note the sponsorship wall.  Pointe shoes ain't cheap.

We got the party started with some Christmas cheer...

My sister Eden and I shared a tender hour moment where she unloaded how hard it is to let her younger sister grow up and spread her wings.  An entire bottle of champagne may have been involved...But I totally feel ya, Ed.

#sorrynotsorry

"She's going to move to a big city and be successfullwaaaah..."

Congratulations, Anna and co, on such a great achievement.  We are so proud of you, and I hope your party left you feeling that way.  Now, you might think, how could Christmas even compare to this lavish Nutcracker party?  I'll answer that for you: PRESENTS.

Grace didn't care much about opening gifts, but she was pretty excited when a few of her favorite friends showed up on Christmas morning.

I'm starting to get what they mean when they say Christmas is for kids. 

Gift opening can make a family famished.  It's a good thing we have cinnamon rolls.  And matching pajamas.  And a fuzzy lamb onesie. ?

A moment of silence for the ho-made cinnamon rolls.

#quadrupling

There are no words.

We rounded out the evening with a beautiful meal surrounded by family and friends, and it was exactly how Christmas is supposed to be.  My favorite part of the night was when Grace inspired us all to sing Christmas carols -- the smile on her face and the energy behind her clapping and singing touched everyone in the room, and it's a memory I will hold in my heart forever.

"Smile!"

You'll go down in history!

My heart is always heavy the days after Christmas, when the world demands we leave our cozy cocoons and stumble back into routines and responsibilities.  This year though, I have Grace...and she makes every day feel new and exciting.  I hope you all had a beautiful and fulfilling holiday season, and are enjoying the first days of a brand new year.  One of my New Year's resolutions is to blog more.  I have another big one that I hope to accomplish, but you'll have to just keep checking in to see if I can resolve to make it happen.

Cheers!