Am I the last blogger to post on their Christmas? Pretty sure I am. Well, even though Christmas seems to be ages ago (was it really just a week and a half ago?) I can’t skip over it because I don’t want to forget all of the blessings from this year’s holiday. And that’s what my Christmas was: a blessing. To be completely honest, I’ve kind of been dreading our first holiday as a married couple. It would mean picking and choosing which family we’d have to celebrate with, and I hated to think of either of our families without us there to celebrate.
As the holidays approached, we decided to remedy that fear by celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas together. J’s parents hosted Thanksgiving and my parents and sister came along. My parents hosted Christmas and invited J’s family for our traditional dinner with our extended family. Plus I got two Christmases! Who is that lucky to have two?! (Although apparently this is a regular occurrence for married folks? My friend Catherine had six!)
Christmas with J’s Family:
Our “Christmas Eve” with J’s family started on Dec 23. The whole family helped J’s best friend propose to his (now) fiance and we got to celebrate with them right after she said yes. That evening we had a large, delicious dinner with some of their family friends and then hosted an impromptu surprise engagement party for the happy engaged couple. We went to sleep giddy like it was Christmas Eve, and woke up to celebrate Christmas. We opened gifts (more on that later!) and then ate a yummy breakfast casserole.
Christmas with My Family:
On Christmas Eve we headed to my parents’ to celebrate with my family. We affectionately call our parents’ home “Mardo” as a combination of their two first names, so my dad surprised us with a corn hole board and added the name to all the details. That evening we went to the candlelight service at church, came home and shared memories from the year over dinner, and then my mom gave us an early gift of home videos on DVD to watch that evening. Christmas morning we opened gifts, stayed in our pajamas until noon, then got ready for our dinner. That afternoon a few aunts, uncles, cousins and J’s family came over for dinner, hosted a corn hole competition (my sister in-law Katie won!), and ended the evening with a bonfire outside.
It worked out perfectly, and I feel so blessed to have in-laws that get along with my family so well. And now I have that sad holiday hangover feeling since the tree is down, decorations are put away, and I’m back to real life. It’s just not as fun as the magical holiday season! But it’s good to be in a routine again. And just to rebel, I kept a strand of lights on my balcony for when I want to revisit the twinkling season. ;)
Great pictures. Looks like a great time.
I have to be honest – I am so jealous whenever you post about your in-laws! What makes it okay every time is how often you express your gratitude for such luck. It really makes me root for you :-).
Aw, thanks SJM for your comment. Yes, I am VERY aware I am in the minority for enjoying and getting along with my in-laws!!