Christmas 2013 was a multi-day, multi-family, and multi-state event for us, and it was wonderful. We started out at home for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, celebrating alone on the night before Christmas and then with Uncle Tate, Aunt Donna, and their twins, and the Benjamin Family on Christmas Day. The day after Christmas, we loaded up and did our own version of
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles to get to Nashville to celebrate Christmas with Grandpa and Grandma Hepper and Aunt Erin and Uncle Chris. One of the highlights of our trip was meeting Aidan, our newest cousin!
The entire holiday was full of fun, love, and excitement. Check it out in the
bazillion pictures below!
We checked all the pre-Christmas boxes: we put out reindeer food in the yard, we tracked Santa via NORAD, we read "The Night Before Christmas", and we left out cookies and milk for Santa.
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| Here, reindeer! |
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| "Twas the Night Before Christmas..." |
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| We've got our eyes on you, Santa! |
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| Cookies for Santa |
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| Someone was a little upset that Santa didn't magically appear when the cookies were placed out for him. |
I'd be remiss if I didn't take a moment here to acknowledge Paul and his Christmas ham. It began as a gifted full ham hock (skin, bones, and mold!) and ended as a delicious sliced ham. Kudos to you and your Christmas ham, Daddy!
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| Day one: the ham in all it's moldy glory. |
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| Day two: soaking. |
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| Day three: boiling and slicing. |
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The finished product!
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We opened presents on Christmas morning as a family of five. Later in the morning, Uncle Tate and his family came over for brunch and more gifts. We ended our day at the Benjamin's house for dinner and fun.
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| Sweet Caroline wanted Daddy to see the gift she made for him at school before we opened any presents. |
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| Margaret on her Minnie scooter. |
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| Julia taking a spin on her tricycle. |
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| Caroline taking her first glimpse at "Caroline" the American Girl doll. |
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| Love at first sight: Margaret and her very own Bitty Baby (whom she soon after named "Pluto") |
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| Julia was thrilled to get her own Bitty Baby too. |
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| Margaret tucking Pluto into her new cradle. |
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| Sheer joy at unwrapping a set of Strawberry Shortcake dolls! |
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| Christmas rocks! |
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| Margaret and her Minnie Mouse "pa-back." |
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| Marble run kit? Yes, please! |
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| It was a hit with Daddy too. |
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| Sheer joy to find bouncy balls in her stocking. |
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| We lost Caroline at several points during the unwrapping process to find her completely enmeshed in baby doll play. |
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| Same for the twins...their new baby dolls needed a bath ASAP. |
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| Christmas brunch with the cousins. |
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| Claire looks on as Julia tests out the scooter in her new Minnie Mouse helmet. |
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Christmas dinner with the Benjamins was a blast!
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And then we were off to Nashville for the final chapter of our Christmas celebration!
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| At the airport! |
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| Margaret was not a fan of riding in her own seat on the airplane. Pluto was more than happy to occupy her vacated space. |
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| Chilling in the Sky Club between flights. |
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| First class agreed with Julia. |
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| The girls wasted no time getting into the paint at Grandpa and Grandma's house. |
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| Meeting Baby Aidan. |
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| Julia engrossed in play with her new horse and stable set. |
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| We enjoyed a fun morning at the Nashville Zoo.... |
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| ...and hit up a fun playground too! |
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| Grandma, Caroline, and Julia working hard to make a tasty breakfast. |
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| Before we knew it, it was time to head back to Richmond (baby dolls and all)! |
Last but not least, our Santa picture at the Commonwealth Club..
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| Julia is terrified by the elves dancing off camera and Margaret is transfixed by something that only she knows. The rest of us...nice picture, I'd say! |
