What a great Christmas we had! Christmas Eve, Kris's family came over to our house. We feasted on oyster stew, seafood chowder (which Annika loved), appetizers and desserts galore. We also watched two Christmas themed movies (Polar Express and The Grinch that Stole Christmas – the Jim Carrey version). Of course there was present opening. Annika doesn’t really “get” the whole present thing yet. She was interested in ripping the paper once in a while but otherwise would just like to go play with her toys, thank you. She really liked the outfit Grandma Lona and Grandpa Dale gave her and carried it around by the hanger. She also liked the wooden train set Uncle Dusty and Aunt Kim gave her. Well, she liked taking the boxes of train parts in and out of the big box they were wrapped in. After Annika went to bed for the night (in her new Christmas pj’s) and everyone had left, Kris and I opened our presents to each other. Wait, scratch that. Kris opened his presents from me. He had already given me my presents earlier (the strand of pearls and matching earrings while our guests were over and the gift certificates earlier in the week).

Christmas morning started off the right way – with present opening and our family tradition of Swedish pancakes with strawberries and whipped cream. Yum! Annika opened her presents from Santa Claus and Mommy and Daddy. Annika’s favorite present of the morning was her new AquaDoodle. We laid the mat on the floor and filled the pen with water and Annika went to town doodling. Then she started sucking the water out of the pen and sucked it dry in a matter of minutes. Weird little girl, she is.

After rousing Annika from her morning nap, we headed to Gramme’s house for our first celebration of the day. Annika had hardly walked in the door and taken her coat off before Auntie Krystle was giving her her first present of the afternoon. It was a talking Elmo doll and Annika LOVED it. She walked around hugging it and making it talk to her. After enjoying our fancy dinner of lasagna (in the good dining room with China, no less!), we opened the rest of the gifts. Annika also received a couple cute outfits and another wooden puzzle set (complete with book you put the puzzle pieces into – so neat!). While Auntie Krystle chased Annika around the house, the rest of us (minus Merv) played the card game Fluxx. Mathias and I won every hand, I think. No, wait, Kris might have won one too.

It was time to head out to Grandpa’s house for dinner and another celebration. Since we were still full from Gramme’s house, we opened presents first at Grandpa’s and then opened presents second. Annika received a hobby horse (ride on horse-on-a-stick). She used it as a weapon, swinging the stick around, until Marcia showed her the proper way to ride it. Annika also thought it was fun to push it around like a broom. The bottom of the stick has rollers so it rolled around nicely for her. Annika was done with presents by this time though so she kept getting up and walking out of the room during present opening. She wanted to go play. The big hit of the evening though was our (Auntie Krystle, Uncle Mathias and us) gift to Grandpa and Marcia. We bought them tickets to the NASCAR Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway on May 28th! They will be down in Charlotte for my cousin’s graduation from high school. They were surprised and very excited.

Annika decided Christmas evening that she was a big girl now. She started walking down the stairs upright, no longer on her butt or tummy. She holds on the wall for balance and stability and then very carefully steps down the stairs. She does the same thing walking up the stairs now. My baby is not allowed to grow up so fast like this! She’s only 15 months old and she’s walking up and down stairs!!! Not fair! Other babies her age are just starting to walk or run and mine is doing this?

Yesterday was a lower-key day than the past couple. I ran some errands (returns, exchanges and Target after-Christmas deals) while Annika napped at home. Then we all headed out to exchange some other gifts Kris received (a computer game I got him). Kris also needed to buy a new power supply for his computer. (Which, by the way, seems to have fixed his computer and he was happy as a clam last night playing his new games.) Then, we met his parents and grandparents for dinner. Great Grandpa Walter and Great Grandma Betty couldn’t join us on Christmas Eve so we visited with them yesterday. The restaurant had paper covering the table cloth. With the children’s menu came crayons and we all had a great time coloring all over the table. Well, Annika scribbled and Kris drew people and animals and flowers for her.

Today, it’s back to usual. I’m at work and Kris and Annika are at home. Hopefully we can get Annika back to her regular routine now. She has a terrible cold and hopefully a few days of not travel will help her get better. She has been such a good little girl (sleeping through the night, some extra crabbiness but nothing extraordinary) even with feeling yucky.

We are so blessed.