December in Review

Our December was jam-packed with holiday festivities (as evidenced by my lack of posts over the last several weeks).  Here is a brief run-down (accompanied by some photos) of what we've been up to:

~We kicked off our holiday gatherings with our annual Friends Thanksmas celebration.  In days gone by, we somehow had the time to gather for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, but have been unable to squeeze in two different gatherings for the past few years.  Instead, we pick a day between Thanksgiving and Christmas to get together for delicious drinks (mine were non-alcoholic this year!), amazing homemade food, and a yankee swap (fondly referred to as "Yankee Grab Bag" around these parts!).

Cookie decorating

~The following weekend, we attended the Fish and Game Club's Holiday dinner and prize draw.  While we didn't win any money (boooo), we had a great time eating and chatting with friends all evening long.

~We attended a family Christmas party complete with cookies, treats, egg nog, and a white elephant gift exchange (like Yankee swap, but the present you bring is something you already own, NOT something you bought).

~The third Holiday weekend brought us to Dave and Fran's annual Christmas party.  So. Much. Delicious. Food!!!!!  We were able to mingle with lots of teacher friends, and I spent most of the evening sitting in a comfy chair with my fellow preggo, Melissa, chatting about all things baby!

~On Christmas Eve, we had our big Christmas dinner with my extended family at my parents' house.  It was great to see my cousins, Dustin and Keisha!  And, of course, always fun to watch the kids open some gifts.

Christmas duds

~On Christmas Day, George and I woke up and headed to my parents' house for breakfast and opening stockings.  After a leisurely couple of hours, we headed back to our apartment to open our gifts from George's family and from each other.  We spent a few hours enjoying our last Christmas as just the two of us, then headed back to my parents' for late afternoon appetizers, dessert, and gifts.  It was a great day and George and I couldn't stop talking about how different next Christmas will be with an almost-one-year-old!

That's one giant box of chocolates!

Inside fun with sleds...because it was 20 below zero!

Woah full-term fat-face!

We also got to visit with Keely while she was in town, I turned THIRTY (and George surprised me with a lovely dinner at Sorpresso's with friends), and we spent a relaxing New Year's Eve having dinner with friends and then snuggling in our jammies for a quiet evening ringing in the new year.  We can't wait to meet our precious little girl - which will surely be the best day of 2014 for our little family!