Twelve Drummers Drumming

Blurry pic of me & the boys on Xmas morning

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I decided to make a proper title for the last day of the run... No more abbreviating, we're down to business now.

**Okay, okay. So maybe that last sentence is as far as I got on Xmas Eve with my blog. Those of you paying attention noted the gap in posts. But I did start this post on Xmas Eve, so I'm leaving the original posting date in tact. What are you gonna do about it? Call the blog police? heh heh**

So now it's actually the day after Christmas. Time has progressed. (Keep up, would ya?) Things got busy, to say the least. Even Skip, who's normally my guiding compass during the holidays- providing gentle direction when I start to get that crazed look in my eyes Christmas week- started acting a little "touched." But we survived and had a wonderful time despite the craziness. Xmas Eve was hectic but lovely. We celebrated the holiday with Skip's family in the private room at Charlie Beigg's. The kids were all well-behaved and we had a nice dinner, followed by presents. When we left there, we drove around listening to Christmas tunes and looking at lights. We finally decorated the tree (!) and everyone piled into bed, energized at the thought of what the morning would bring.

Rocco in his crib Xmas morning
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As it turned out, morning brought lots of thoughtful gifts to each other, along with some wonderful gifts from friends and family. I got a leatherman, which I was totally thrilled about! (Thanks, Baby!) Skip got matching his-and-hers Ozzy Osbourne shirts for us to wear at next week's Ozzy Osbourne/Rob Zombie concert for which I gave him tickets. This was a real act of giving on my part, believe me. I have zero interest in attending this show, but I'm gonna make it fun! Hmmm, should I wear a bra under my Ozzy shirt or no?... I'll have to think it over... haha

One of Oscar's favorite gifts was a set of crayons from Owen. And I think Owen's top pick is the book that Santa left for him: Santa Claus. It's the coolest book: full of stats about Santa and how the whole Christmas Eve thing works. It tells you the measurements of Santa's sleigh (with and without the reindeer)... Shows you how the mailroom works... There's a recipe for Mrs. Claus' cookies in there... Just a great book for someone who wants the facts about how exactly the whole event is orchestrated.

Owen's bug glasses from my godparents
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The boys also got a rocketship tent that they are all enjoying together. I think Rocco may actually enjoy it the most! It's currently set up in our gloriously sun-filled family room since there's no furniture in there right now. It will eventually move downstairs to the playroom to make room for couches, etc. Unless we decide to go with an outer-space theme in the family room.... Hey!! Now, there's an idea!

The boys playing in the rocket tent this morning
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I think my favorite part of Christmas Day is opening the gifts that Owen & Oscar purchase for all of us. This is the second year that they've done it and it's turning out to be the best thing ever! My parents take them a month or so before Christmas and they go shopping with an allowance. They split up- each of them goes with a grandparent so they don't know what the other guy is buying. Then they wrap everything up before coming home. Last year, you may remember, my favorite gift of the season was one that Oscar bought for Rocco. The yellow romper with pink flowers and butterflies on it. I LOVED that thing- such an innocent gift! Rocco loved wearing it, too. Check out the pictures from the blog last year... haha Oscar loved (and still loves) both butterflies and the color pink, so he thought it would be perfect for Rocco. It was the sweetest thing.

Well, this year, Oscar wins again. Our five-year-old son gave me these for Christmas:

Yep. How great is that?! I almost died laughing but I had to keep it in because he is very sensitive about thinking people are laughing at him. Skip says I should be thankful Oscar didn't get me a g-string.

Anyway, we finished out the day with our traditional seafood dinner. Skip made a delicious meal this year: broiled haddock with peppers and pecorino, Alaskan king crab legs, poblano pepper mashed potatoes and a side of herbed carrots and corn. Even Rocco loved the haddock! We were all stuffed, but not so much that we didn't find room for a slice of the yule log as we all watched The Polar Express on the big screen. It was fantastic.

Anyway, the past few days have been great. We're reminded once again (not by the gifts, but rather, by all the time spent with loved ones) how awesome our life is together. That's something that I really don't forget too often, but the reminder is always welcome. Hope you had a wonderful holiday, too.

Rocco- having a blast with all the excitement
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The day-aftermath.
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Now I'm off to chill with my boys... Stay tuned for my New Year's resolution in another day or two! And I must mention that this is the last post in the Twelve Days of Christmas series... You know what that means... We're going back to the more erratic, spontaneous postings that occur whenever I might think of it! It took a lot of effort to get a posting-a-day up here (and I almost really did it!) so don't count on that frequency from here on out. But, I have enjoyed touching in more often here, so my goal is to begin posting not-quite-daily, but more than I was before the holidays. We'll see how it goes. And, no, that's not my New Year's resolution.

Last, but definitely not least: in case she checks in here today... HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM!! Love you.

xoxo k.