I absolutely love being a mom on Christmas! Charlie’s first Christmas was wonderful, and our worries that we may get snowed in came to nothing.

On Christmas Eve evening, the three of us drove about an hour down to Daniel’s uncle’s house for his traditional family party. Charlie hadn’t met any of the extended family on Daniel’s side yet, so that combined with being in a place he had never seen meant that he had a lot to take in. He seemed to enjoy himself, except when he wasn’t allowed to eat the paper from the gifts he unwrapped (a trend which would continue the next day).

We didn’t get home and put Charlie to bed until 10:30, but he had slept an hour in the car so it wasn’t too terrible. He was exhausted, though, and pretty cranky. Once he was in bed, Daniel and I finished cleaning up from the cookies we had been baking earlier that day and I prepared a stuffed French toast casserole for brunch at my parents’ the next day. Christmas morning we came out to the living room around 7:30 to make breakfast (cinnamon rolls!) and open our gifts. After a couple of packages that we let Charlie open, we opened the rest of his for him. He was just getting much too upset about not being allowed to eat the wrapping paper when he did it himself.

After a leisurely morning with my little family, it was time to get ready for church. We left around 10:00 to drop the casserole off at my parents’ house before 11:00 mass. It had been years since the last time I went to mass on Christmas morning rather than the night before, so I was expecting getting there a half hour early to be necessary—I was wrong. But it was nice to get a good seat and pray for a while before the liturgy began, something I almost never have time to do anymore since Charlie was born. And I really enjoyed the feel of Christmas day mass, and how it focused our day on the holy day and not just the holiday. I think we’ll do it next year, too.

Brunch and gifts at my parents’ house came next, and we spent the rest of the day over there and joined them for dinner as well before coming home to put Charlie to bed. Daniel and I watched a movie—Eclipse of the Twilight saga if you must know (my sister Rose got it for Christmas and let us borrow it). Not exactly Christmas-y, but enjoyable nonetheless!

The day after Christmas was Sunday mass, then back to my parents’ again for a get-together with my mom’s side of the family and more delicious food. Then home again. And there you have a play-by-play of our family’s Christmas festivities.

I also got some wonderful news on Christmas—Laura, my best friend from high school whom I have certainly mentioned here before, is engaged! Her now-fiancé proposed to her on Christmas morning, and Laura asked me to be her maid of honor. I just realized today that I should have told her “no,” though, but that I would be her matron of honor… because that’s just the kind of silly joke that I would make. I can’t believe I missed the opportunity. Anyway, I am so extremely excited for Laura and can’t wait to help with her wedding plans!

And so, another new year is about to begin, the third that I will have come to during my blogging experience here, my second of married life, and Charlie’s first ever (not counting when he was in the womb, of course). I am so excited for all that God has in store for my family’s 2011. Seriously, I’m really starting to look forward to Charlie’s first birthday, which isn’t for another five and a half months.