Christmas Day

So on Christmas day we decided to spend it with just our family at our new house this year. We still had wonderful celebrations and "Christmas Days" with our families, but we wanted a chance to have our own celebration to watch our girls open their gifts and create some new Christmas celebrations this year under our own Christmas tree. I have to say, it was nice. If we didn't have celebrations with our families, I would have been sad...but we had the best of both worlds. We got a chance to have special moments and celebrations with them, but we also had the opportunity to celebrate as our own family. We were able to "take it all in" and get to watch and enjoy the kids enjoying Christmas. We had fun seeing their faces in the morning while they opened gifts, and had some special days. I had lots of things I wanted to do on the day, but there's always more time in the day in my head than in actuality, especially with nap times. But all in all we covered a lot...We opened gifts, had a special breakfast, played with all the new toys and gifts, watched a Christmas movie, had a nice dinner and went for a drive to see Christmas lights (we also converted Ashley's crib into a bed finally--we had held off since she had never tried climbing out until recently, coupled with the fact that we were living with Lisa and Bruce, then moved into a brand new house with lots of new temptations and wanted to wait until it was less exciting). I had hoped to do a gingerbread house and bake cookies, but as I said, not enough time in the day....We did do the gingerbread house the next day (Ashley and I during Emily's nap (daddy was at work), and we are yet to do the cookies, or should I say cake balls. We will though :)  Anyway, here are the pics....

Pictures from our Christmas dinner

Working on the gingerbread house the next day...Ashley was concentrating

The girls opening their gifts

Daddy and Emily

Our stockings were hung by the chimney with care....

More Christmas dinner

Ashley is The Little Mermaid/Harry Potter/Dr. Shohen

Ashley with "Barry" the berry from the movie "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs part 2", the first movie she went to see with daddy

Our dinner...yum...

Emily eating the orange from her stocking...lol

Opening gifts

Ashley got the same nail polish from Santa that we saw in FAO Swartz NYC trip

We like our new gifts

My super warm new boots that are AMAZING in the cold/wet weather...I never knew what I was missing....although, again, depressing to get "cold weather"gifts...haha

My sweet girls with some new toys

Ashley doing my hair with her new hair styling kit from our friends, the Lastingers

Ashley got new "big girl" underpants from Santa! No more pull ups!!

All the new toys, and she chooses a box!

Ashley absolutely loves her new mermaid costume from Aunt Kristyn and Uncle Brian!

Our new Christmas plates and cups

Converting Ashley's crib into a bed! Bittersweet moment!