Christmas Morning 2012

Okay, I'm going to try to bust through the rest of my Christmas pics since we're getting a bit far removed from that holly jolly time. Isn't it funny how quickly we go from being totally immersed in the Christmas spirit to wanting to move on, take down the decorations, start afresh, and get back on a normal schedule? But boy, was it fun while it lasted.

I always love to get a picture of the tree and stockings on Christmas morning. It's the culmination of so much hard work and anticipation--why not revel in it for a few moments before tearing it all to shreds?

I made the must-have breakfast casserole the day before. (Maybe I'll come back in here later and type up the recipe. It's on a very well worn 8-year-old post-it note from a friend in Iowa City.) I stored it outside on the deck since my fridge was already full, so you can see how much snow fell during the night. Perfect!

A picture of the thrashed but happy parents. I don't know why I'm complaining. I ALWAYS fall asleep on Christmas Eve while Brandon is still wrapping and setting up. I'm not sure if I'm a wimp or he's a robot, but we are certainly opposites when it comes to late night stamina:

Who doesn't love gold coins in their stockings?

And magic tricks:

We have a very precise schedule of organized chaos on Christmas morning. First stockings, then breakfast. And it's always the same breakfast. Last year I tried to make a different breakfast casserole, but it was met with serious resistance. So now the menu firmly includes: Clone of a Cinnabon cinnamon rolls, THE breakfast casserole (recipe coming later . . . maybe), and grapefruit halves:

It really was a beautiful morning:

On to the wrapped presents! Rachael turns just about every single thing into a Mommy and Baby and never tires of role playing that relationship, so I got her yet more baby gear. Here she is with one of her favorite dolls in a cute little doll carrier:

And another new baby. Because what 5-year-old girl has enough babies? Okay, Kate wasn't really into babies at this age, but Rachael wants to have like 23 babies when she grows up. Or so she says:

We also have a specific way of going about the present opening. The youngest person goes first and chooses a present for someone else. They then open their present while everyone oohs and aahs, thank you's are said, and then the next oldest person picks another present for someone else, and so on. It makes the morning drag out in a wonderfully slow way and also prevents any presents from being lost, forgotten, or unappreciated. Elizabeth's name hadn't been picked for awhile and it was coming up on my dad's turn to choose, so he asked her what present she wanted him to pick:

It was a good one! The roller blades that she has been wearing NON-STOP around the house ever since. Seriously, non-stop:

We have a ridiculous amount of stuffed animals in our house and they drive me UP A WALL! Even though we occasionally get rid of some, I swear they multiply in the middle of the night. But what is a mom to do when the one thing your daughter wants for Christmas (along with a stuffed Tigger--no, I'm not kidding, my kids are obsessed with stuffed animals) is a sock monkey school bus set? You buy it, that's what! But not until that same daughter gives away 4 or 5 other stuffed animals first. Which she did. And apparently it was worth it:

This is the most addictive game EVER! You need to get one for your family next year. (It's called Perplexus if you didn't click on that link.) I probably spent over an hour on Christmas Day trying (unsuccessfully) to get to the end:

An erector set for Will. I am painfully aware that we are getting short on years for buying him toys like this. WAAAAH!

The coveted Adventure Time t-shirt Kate bought for Will:

I promise Kate did get a present or two, but here she is choosing for someone else:

The whole thing was a little overwhelming for Yuki:

Until we eventually lured her out with the ultimate classic toy, The Slinky:

My dad modeling the sweater we got him:

And the tie:

Yes, there were also presents for my mother, Brandon, and me, but I just wasn't being that deliberate about picture taking. (And my mom would absolutely DIE if I posted pictures of her on my blog without her hair and make-up done.) So it's back to the youngest and the cutest:

Just for kicks, I took a few snapshots of the darling debris here and there. At our house, we firmly believe Santa and Jesus are good buddies and totally compatible at Christmastime:

I am so sentimental about our very old and very thrashed nativity set that I got for under $20 over 10 years ago at an Aldi store back in Iowa City. Rachael set the figurines up early in the season, and I never even tried to make them look different. This is how a nativity should always be:

After presents, we got serious about the food. And candy:

After brining the turkey in the garage for 24 hours, I put a bunch of butter, garlic, fresh sage, rosemary, thyme and parsley under the skin, stuffed it with onions, celery, and more garlic, and then injected it with more butter and garlic, and cooked it in a bag. (This recipe from The Best Bites blog.) That was one worked over turkey:

Kate made me this apron in a sewing class at school last year. I totally love it:

In she goes:

(Can you believe I didn't have a roasting pan until I got this one for $15 at the grocery store on Christmas Eve? Somehow I have gone all these years without ever being the one to make the turkey!) 

The day just got prettier and prettier. The kids (and I) spent a good chunk of time sledding in our backyard. I did that with them for about 3 days in a row, until I finally woke up one morning in pain and remembered that I'm not 12 anymore:

Elizabeth modeling her new matching doll outfit. On rollerblades, of course:

Is this the funniest picture ever? It's so Stepford Wives. (Except for the big mess of a kitchen office in the background which is anything BUT "simple" as the sign says.)

The day came to a close sooner than it should have, and dinner wasn't completely ready until way later than we had planned. It was good timing, though, since Jason, Liz, and Andrew got in right about the time we were ready to eat. They were supposed to be with us on Christmas Eve, but (long story short) they got delayed by the East Coast storm too and ended up in Salt Lake at Jason's parents' house before coming to us since they live closer to the airport. Don't let Andrew's blase´ expression fool you here. They had a GREAT time together, he and my three youngest, playing Avatar in the basement for hours on end and sledding outside. We loved having them with us for a few days: 

This is the only picture I managed of the Christmas dinner table. (Jason will be thrilled.) That suspicious looking bottle on the table (only to the Mormons in the room) is a non-alcoholic Chardonney that Ashley brought to us on Christmas Eve. Bet you didn't even know they made that, did you? Neither did we! It's kind of like the sparkling cider/juice next to it, but way better. The platter on the left is what I call my mom's "Minnie Mouse" relish tray. (Don't ask.) It has olives, bread and butter pickles, and pickled beets. The only thing missing is sliced green onions:

The rest of the evening was spent lounging around, visiting, and playing with toys. Did I mention that Rachael literally wore these pajamas for three days in a row? Oh, to be five again:

Elizabeth hasn't taken off her roller blades since that day, and Yuki has spent many moments in this doll stroller going around the house:

The Sock Monkeys got a ride too:

Hard to believe it's already been almost a month and Christmas 2012 is in the can . . .