"It Was The Night Before Christmas"

Christmas Eve With The Kids

And Adults

It's just 9:00 here in Virginia and Drew and I have been up for an hour, discussing the state of the world. Evie just came in and is making her coffee and the three of us are the only ones up on a gray, cold Christmas morning. 

Jill, Drew, Halle, And Hayden

Baba And The Gals

Yesterday, Christmas Eve, is always my favorite day/night of the holiday season. Once everyone was up, meaning Halle and Hayden, Evie and Jill got busy with prepping for the gathering of 15 family members most arriving at 4:00. Much had already been done as Evie put together stuffed shells and hanky pankies at the lake. Jill had the table set and it would seem all was already done but there's always lots more to do. Around 11:00, Drew and I drove to a Manassas Texas Roadhouse to pick up their rolls and cinnamon butter. Of course, we had to have a beer and enjoy a couple of their rolls before returning home.

Cousins Hanging In The Kitchen

Jill And Clayton 

Hanging In Kitchen

Hayden, Chanel and Caleb

When we returned, the girls seemed to have everything under control and were able to enjoy the early afternoon. I took a nap, a good one, and woke up ready to have a good time. Everyone got gusssied up and those who were skipping church arrived at 4:00, the rest after church around 6:00. Hayden and Halle's five cousins arrived, so there were two groups, the cousins and their parents. We enjoyed a table filled with appetizers as the wine, beer, and mixed drinks flowed. It was fun talking with Drew's family, most of whom we haven't seen in a year or two. His sister's kids are neat, some still in college, others working in Montana or South Carolina. Both boys are surfers so I had fun talking with them about the good old days when I surfed in Honolulu in the 1960s. I am sure I bored the hell out of them.

Dinner

After Dinner Talk

When the churchgoers arrived, Jill, Drew, and Evie got busy with dinner. Drew carved the tenderloin and Jill and Evie pulled out the stuffed shells, scalloped potatoes, green beans, rolls, and made a salad. Dinner was a feast and hardly anything was left, a good sign. I ended up sitting at the end of the table with the cousins which was fun, lots of craziness. We sat around talking after dinner and the cousins went down in the basement to hang out. Eventually, we migrated to the living room, talked and laughed until 9:30 when everyone was ready to leave. The girls were really good about helping to clean up without being asked. By 10:15, the kitchen was cleaned up and Evie and I went to bed, followed by Jill and Drew. It was a fun-filled night with our Virginia family 

Merry Christmas!