Our first Christmas in our new house

The holidays have been so much fun. Christmas Eve mom and I took Inara to see Santa at the mall. Too bad the line was atrocious. We waited for 45 min and weren't halfway through the line, so we gave up. I was really bummed because Inara's into Santa this year, so I hoped she'd get a pic with him, but I kinda waited to the last minute so mom could go with me and Shawn didn't seem too interested in going earlier. Oh well. At least Inara got to see him and waved and blew kisses to him. We walked around Park Meadows Mall for a bit and I took mom to this super cool Christmas store. They have some of the prettiest decorations. If I only had extra money to buy ornaments from this place. Maybe someday.

That night we went to the Tomlinson house and had dinner. The night started off on a bad note when Barb's puppy snapped at Avery. It didn't break skin, but it really scared Avery and Thane too. I guess it's just hard to have puppies around little ones. Dinner and all the snacks were good. Poor Inara was pretty tired that night since she got to bed a little later than usual. Then the fun began. Inara ended up waking up 4 times that night screaming super loud. I got up with her twice and Shawn got her the other 2 times. I really think it's her teeth because it was a pain cry and not a scared kinda cry. The first time I got up with her, I struggled to get back to sleep, so I ended up finishing my Christmas letter to Inara, looked up info online for cooking a prime rib, and put the presents in the stockings. One time Shawn got up, he struggled for about an hour to get back to sleep. Ugh. So needless to say, Shawn and I had a rough night of sleep. Perfect for Christmas morning.

Shawn and I ended up waking up around 7ish. Inara finally woke up at 8:30. Not a surprise considering the rough night of sleep she had. Shawn made breakfast for us. After a slight mishap, he ended up making both french toast and waffles along with bacon. Sometimes mistakes can be good since it meant we got a hearty breakfast. We then started opening presents with Inara. I was so happy mom was hear to watch her. We had a blast. Inara really started getting into it. She's so delicate when she opens presents and doesn't rip away like most kids. She loved the musical toy mom and dad got her. She was rocking out and dancing. It was too cute. Shawn bought her a tunnel/teepee/tent set that she loved crawling through too. Of course, I got her lots of books (so I can get more variety when reading to her...haha). Grandma Di and Uncle Jason sent her a zoo train and an animal bowling set that I know she's gonna love playing with. Thankfully, we got some new clothes for Inara too. I swear that kid is growing too fast that I can't keep her closet stocked. She got pretty pooped after opening presents, so she did take a good morning nap. Thank goodness considering we knew she wouldn't get an afternoon one.

Dinner turned out fantastic! The Tomlinsons and Myatts (Kristi's parents) arrived around 2:30. I cooked my first prime rib, and honestly, I have to say I'm impressed with it. I thought it tasted perfect! Especially for my first one. I also cooked green beans with almonds, mashed potatoes, rolls, and mom did her candied yams which I love. I also baked a black forest cake. I've decided I follow in the Tomaselli chef skills but not the baking skills. I'm never 100% pleased with my baked goods. The cake was alright, but I will try something different next year for sure. Kristi and her mom cooked the turkey, which was perfect! Super moist and flavorful. They also brought the gravy and cornbread stuffing (super tasty too). I'm not a big cranberry fan, but they make this great cranberry and orange sauce that's excellent on turkey. Gonna have to get the recipe for that one. I was so happy with how the dinner turned out. I loved getting to use so many of my serving dishes and china that we got as wedding gifts. After dinner, we opened presents with the Tomlinsons. Kristi and Thane really spoiled Inara with so many great gifts. Thank you guys!!! It was cute when Avery opened our presents, she'd come and give me a hug and thank me. She's getting so grown up. Our friends and family really out did themselves with all the wonderful gifts we got. I have to say the best part of the day was hosting my first Christmas in my first house. Everyone seemed to have a good time. The day would have been perfect had my dad and brother been here, but I felt better knowing they weren't alone and got to have their own dinner, but I'd still rather they had been here with me. I'm selfish that way. Ha ha. I hope everyone had a wonderful day and I promise to get caught up on all the calls I missed yesterday. I love you all so very much!!!