cotton.headed.ninny.muggins

"He who has not Christmas in his heart will never find it under a tree."

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

this has been a wonderful week full of visits from family and friends. as many christmas is my favorite holiday, but i have feel that getting older christmas has become even more special than when i was younger. speaking with family and friends, i have expressed not feeling the typical "christmas day at noon blues." you know what i am talking about...the feeling most kids get after all their presents are open and now the long 352 days wait till next christmas. getting older those "blues" disappear and now it is all about the true meaning of christmas. the birth of our Savior! and being in the presence of family and friends!

i always LOVE being with my family for the holidays and this year matt and i were able to spend christmas eve together both at my aunt and uncle's (in mission viejo) and then at his family's home (in riverside). this is the beginning of many driving miles from family to family...i guess that's what happens when get "betrothed" to someone (as what my grandpa said in his christmas eve toast).

this week i was able to see many friends, including claire. claire and i had our 2nd annual claire and shannon christmas cookie extravaganza! we made soooo many cookies...double chocolate chip, sugar, pumpkin chocolate chip, peanut butter and no bake peanut butter-oatmeal-chocolate cookies...can't wait till next year!

(not all but some of the cookies)

christmas eve was wonderful...at my aunt's and UD's it is always fun! with jokes flying around and lots of laughter! matt and i received some of our first engagements presents from my wonderful aunt and uncle (wedding champagne glasses and picture frame). dinner was amazing!

we then made our way over to matt's family home. this is my 2nd year spending christmas eve with them and it is always very nice! opening christmas gifts, eating lots of cookies and spending time with matt's family was very enjoyable...so many more of these to follow!

after going to 8am mass (least crowded christmas mass) we came back and got back into our christmas pj's then began to make latkes (jewish potato pancakes) and crepes. G-ma and G-pa came over a wonderful breakfast and opening presents! (g-ma got a I-PAD!) such

a blessing to spend christmas morning with g-ma and g-pa!

(the new shredder g-ma gave me to shred the potatoes)

(latkes: grandma said it reminded her of her mother's latkes)

the rest of the day we laid around watching "it's a wonderful life" and "the nativity story." for dinner we decided to go to the new little sushi place lauren and i discovered at 10pm on thursday. even though we were the only white people at the sushi place, we started the night off well. after sushi we hit up mcdonald's for ice cream cones then drove down to balboa and go on the ferry to look at christmas lights.

it was a wonderful christmas!

"Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love! "