Wow… the whirlwind of Christmas is over. My parents left this morning & are headed back up to Seattle, so we now have one week to settle in and start some of our own routines as a family. Also I want to get our house back in order i.e. Christmas decorations down, Cash’s baby stuff organized, clean everything, etc. before we fly to Washington for our short vacation & to show off little man to all of our family & friends there. Along with all of that the New Year starts Tuesday! Hopefully I can finish the post about his birth story before then 🙂

Let’s back track a little. Our first Christmas as a family of 3 was amazing! We couldn’t be more lucky to both have such wonderful families. And of course we were all very spoiled… Cash especially but that is exactly how it should be. I know he wont remember this year but we made sure to take lots of pictures and start some traditions, I’m already excited as I know each year will be better and better.

Having my parents stay with us for 12 days was definitely entertaining. We all got along great and it wasn’t too “Griswold-y” 🙂 I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed their company and spending the holiday together. It was especially nice for Brad and I to hand off Cash to the grandparents so we could just get things done, or take a nap. I also got to take each of my parents along on separate trips so that I had help with Cash in the mad (last minute) rush of holiday shopping. Worked out great for me! And I know they loved when we “took advantage” as it only meant that much more time with their grandson. 

HaHa… He’s not sure about Uncle David/ “Winky”

We had a really nice Christmas Eve dinner at our house just us, my parents, and my brother (well he mostly slept when he was here but he was still here). Then on Christmas morning we dove right into stockings followed by exchanging gifts. Cash fell asleep, we must not have been that entertaining. After there was a joint effort in making a very yummy breakfast of Wendy’s sourdough pancakes, bacon & eggs. After showers and prepping of food to take to Brad’s parents we were finally on our way to Steve and Wendy’s house (only an hour behind). 

I have to say it’s amazing how much this little guy has changed our routines. It’s not easy to adjust to his eating/sleeping/pooping schedule, remember to bring everything you’ll need for him when you leave the house, and get yourself ready. Our son is especially cute as he seems to know just when to time accidents i.e. peeing on a fresh outfit, exploding poops, and even spitting up. We have quickly learned, when it comes to parenting, you’ll need a sense of humor! 🙂

That being said we had a wonderful Christmas dinner and stayed much later than planned on, spending time with Brad’s cousins over dessert and then opening gifts once they left. They have a tradition of playing a dice game called Left, Right, Center. It’s really fun because it’s truly a game of luck/chance. This year we introduced my mother to the game and my dad watched Cash (we’ll get him to play next year). The best part about it is it came down to Brad and I at the very end. It gets only a little competitive and I ended up giving Brad the pleasure of winning. I’m glad it was us 🙂 But really we just had so much fun. 

The best part was getting home and laying in bed with Brad & Cash, rehashing the day and winding down… Each day as our family grows together I feel more and more lucky. I look at my two boys and feel an overwhelming sense of joy and happiness. 

If there is one thing I know it is that we are so very blessed.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas with their loved ones. And those that weren’t able to be together this year… I hope they will be next year. 

Next up look for the birth story, New Years Eve, and a one month old post. Wow… time is already flying by!

I’ll leave you with this…