Christmas Day and Christmas Eve

Christmas has come and gone this year and if it's possible I think Matt and I were even more spoiled this year than last much thanks to our parents. We had a really good time with our families as always. The events started Christmas eve at the Smith house. We went out to Scottsdale to Matt's grandparents for a very nice dinner and a polite little white elephant game. (We were playing with a retired preacher and preacher's wife...they weren't really getting the the whole you can steal other people's presents part of the game). Needless to say, Matt and I got lucky because we ended up with the the Granny Barbara gifts...she's a fan of giving cash :) Afterwards we went to the Christmas eve service at church which turned out very nice.

This is the "kids" table aka the cool table :) It's too bad Brenda's face got cut off.

Then it was back to Matt's parents for more presents! We decided to make this a tradition (presents with Matt's family Christmas eve night) as to lessen the amount of houses Matt and I have to go to on Christmas day (last year we did 4!). We didn't get home until around 1 A.M. which was a little taxing, but all in all I think it is worth it. This is my second Christmas being married to Matt and I will say that Matt's family has fit me right into their traditions which I think is sweet. I even get my very own stocking! As previously mentioned we got pretty spoiled. Matt got the Beatles anthology which he has been watching for over a week now. He absolutely loves it! Every day he tells me stories about the Beatles and their history. Matt's parents also pitched in for the TV that Matt and I got for our bedroom (its a fancy new flat screen). As for what they got me...I got my very own I-Pod. Yes, this the only one I have ever owned! A little behind the times I know. Either way I was pretty excited. I ended up spending the entire next day downloading songs into my I-tunes on the computer. Last but not least, we got Dark Knight from Jay which neither Matt or myself had seen. Matt has already watched it and loved it, but I was only able to watch a little because I got sick as a dog 2 days after Christmas and had to stay in bed the entire day :( I am just now getting my voice back.

I am making a goofy face in this picture, but I was excited about my I-Pod!

The next morning (Christmas day) Matt and I woke up and did our little gift exchange. After the late night Christmas eve we were lazy and just gave each other our presents in bed ;) I got Matt Band of Brothers and a Sun's hoodie (that didn't come until 3 days later...Stupid Sports Authority--I used to work there and don't have the fondest of memories). Meanwhile, Matt got me some towel hooks, and I-tunes gift card, speakers and an armband for my I-Pod. The speakers are small so that I can bring them into my classroom and play music while my students are working.

This is what Austin got Courtney...she is unbelievably TERRIFIED of cats! Nice pick Austin ;) Very comical!

Trying on his Spiderman seat?

Soon after exchanging gifts we had to get up and get ready to go to my dad's house for breakfast. We got my dad a Redskin cue ball and I was really excited to give it to him. All my siblings came and we made waffles. In keeping with tradition, my dad gave us cash in an envelope...no card, just an envelope! It was definitely appreciated though. And let's be honest; cash is always my favorite gift. We had fun at my dad's, but we were only there for a couple of hours before we were headed off to the next house.

We had Christmas lunch at Matt's other grandparents on his mom's side. They had a deep fried turkey for lunch, which I had never had...yummo! They injected this spicy marinade into the turkey that made it very tasty (I don't generally like turkey that much). We pretty much visited with family which is always fun. Matt's cousin who wants to be a teacher was down from college so naturally I had a lot to talk about with her. She is such a sweet girl and she is going to make an excellent teacher.

Some of the grand kids

Last stop of the day was my mom and Scott's house. My parents always makes a very non-traditional meal because we have some very picky eaters in my family (unfortunately I am one of them). We has macaroni and cheese, baked ziti and ham. It made sense to us. After dinner we did our gift exchange. My nephew made out like a bandit! Then again, so did Matt and I...I always figured that once you move out and get married that the Christmas gravy train would stop (or at least slow down), but that is just not the case. We got a lot of, well, cash and gift cards. I definitely cant complain. Because of all the money we got Matt and I can now buy my new front loading washer I have been wanting since we got married! I am so excited. We had a lot of fun at my parents with my nephews toys. Austin got a tyke size electric guitar that comes with a microphone and karaoke CD's. You can only imagine...

Who is the better rock star; Me or Austin?



These are Austin's dance moves...now who's the bigger rock star? I agree. It's still him. Oh well.

You would think we were a musical family...not so much! We sounded like dying cats, but we have fun which is all that matters :)

Christmas was an absolute blast this year. I am such a fan of the whole season and this year definitely did not disappoint.

Merry Christmas to everyone! We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.