Christmas 2007

Chris and I drove from Phoenix, Arizona to Dallas, Texas for Christmas. We left the house at 6am Saturday morning and arrived at Chris's parents' house at 12:30am Saturday night. Approximately 17 hours. Driving was preferable to the cost of two plane tickets, especially since we didn't buy early, and we got to take the dogs with us.

While in Texas, we stayed at Chris's parents' house but split our time pretty equally with the families. It made for a busy vacation and we were definitely worn out by the time we got back home. Getting to spend so much time with my nephew, Braydon, was a highlight of Christmas for me. I hadn't seen him since May when he was 3 months old. Now he's 10 months and walking around like a champ! He's even talking a little bit. Both my mother and I heard him say "Done" crystal clear when I asked him if he wanted any more bottle or if he was done. Awesome.

Getting to spend so much time with both my sisters was a highlight too! With all of us living apart, it isn't often we see each other. I enjoyed getting to hang out together. Hopefully with Karen and Jason moving back to the States, we'll have the opportunity to get together more often.

We also got to visit my 96 year old grandmother. While she didn't make it out of her nursing home for the holiday, we had a lovely visit at her home. I thought her spirits were good and she looked better than the last visit. Her memory loss is getting worse, which always makes me feel sad. This time she talked about not knowing what year it was.

Christmas day was split between families which made it a day where we were just showered with gifts and love. I'm so, so lucky that Chris's family accepts me and that my family accepts Chris. As my mother reminded me, marriage is also about bringing two families together and we're lucky that it's already going so smoothly.

One of my favorite moments from Christmas morning was seeing Braydon with the Jack in the Box. He loved that it played pretty music but wasn't at all happy with the little doll unexpectedly popping out of the box. The look on his face was priceless! So naturally, we did it over and over.

At Chris's parents' house, I really enjoyed watching his niece, Emily, get showered with gifts.

Emily wasn't the only one showered in gifts, we were too! Everyone was so generous this year! Especially both sets of parents who pampered us and fed us awesome meals while we were visiting. Being with two families at the holidays means twice the holiday meals!

After Christmas, we spent some time catching up with friends, celebrating my brother-in-law's birthday, going to the Kimbell and Arlington Art Museums, and talking about wedding plans with the family. Wedding planning was by far the most stressful part of the trip, but I suspect this entire journey will have its ups and downs. At the end of the week, we hopped back in the car with the dogs and a ton of presents and drove back to Phoenix. We spent a very quiet new years eve alone at our house drinking champagne and eating crab legs. We didn't stay awake until midnight, but I still got my new year's kiss...and get more every day.

View the entire set of Christmas photos.