Christmas 2011

We started our Christmas trip to CA with Nathan having a beard and me having brown hair.

We ended with me having "raspberry creme" hair and Nathan having...whatever you call this.

Our holidays this year:

• 23rd Drove to CA with Nathan, his sister Sarah, and Sarah's roommate (very full car)
• Upon arriving in CA, immediately had Christmas with the cousins
• Christmas Eve service project, ham dinner, and general craziness
• Christmas Day presents, Christmas story, church as a family, quick family photos, tons of fun, Hanukkah dinner and story
• 26th-30th in Solvang (cute Danish town) with my sisters Jaime and Janice and their families
• On the way back from Solvang, had brunch with my friend Holly and her family
• New Year's Eve banged pans outside at midnight with Nathan's parents
• New Year's Day visited my parents and my grandma, then drove to Henderson, NV, where we stayed at a stranger's house...but they were related to friends that are like family....that was a little weird
• January 2, breakfast buffet (only reason I like Vegas) with Alina, oil change to make the car happy again, then home where there was no snow, the weather was reasonable, and the house and kitties were perfect

I got great gifts like a handmade apron, handmade dish cloths, a fresh pineapple, a Christmas shirt, wooden spoons, and earrings that look like fall leaves.  The last gift was especially heartwarming, because my bachelor BIL actually went on Etsy and hunted them down.  Overall it was wonderful to be with both sides of the family and play with my nieces and nephews that I don't see often.  Of course, the warm sunshiny days weren't bad either.  :-)