How I spent my first Christmas

This past Sunday was Christmas Day. You may have heard or read something about it. Like I said in my previous post, I spent Christmas with Dad's family over in Kennewick. Rather than bore you with any ramblings about how my very first Christmas went, I thought I'd just share with you some of my favorite photos from our family time. Enjoy!

Some quality time with Grandpa and my cousin Addison.

Cousin Madeline, Auntie Heather and cousin Addison. From the time we got to Kennewick on Dec. 22 until Auntie Heather and Uncle Brian left on Christmas Eve, I'm pretty sure I spent about 97% of that time in Auntie Heather's arms. And I loved every minute of it.

Since Auntie Heather and Uncle Brian went home on Christmas Eve, we opened presents two days early, on Dec. 23. As you can tell from the photo, I wasn't exactly sure what to think of this doppelganger I received from Grammy and Grandpa.

Nobody loves wrapping presents more than my Auntie Carri. Obviously she couldn't get enough, so she moved on to Addison (who definitely didn't mind).

With all the dogs we had in the house this year (it was these three, plus another who was too shy to have her photo taken), I felt like the Old Man in "A Christmas Story" trying to deal with the Bumpus Hounds.

Speaking of "A Christmas Story," we all watched it after opening presents. Grammy and I made it about 20 minutes before we passed out. From what I've been told, the only people to watch it to the end were Dad, Uncle J and Madeline.

Here I am with Dad (who happens to be sporting a pretty creepy grin), getting ready to head to church for Christmas Eve service. And yes, I'm quite aware of how cute I look in my church clothes -- hence the smirk on my face. That hat, by the way, was a present from Auntie Heather and Uncle Brian.

Here I am with Dad (looking a bit more human) and Mom after getting home from church. Yep, that's Mom's homemade Santa hat perched on my head.

Christmas morning is finally here! I celebrate with a nice little fist pump. And in case you're wondering, that outfit is just as comfy as it is adorable.

After a fun day at Grammy and Grandpa's and an excellent dinner at Auntie Carri and Uncle J's, I was pretty tuckered out, so I went to bed early. Good thing, too -- we were on the road at 6 a.m. on Dec. 26 to get to Redmond to celebrate with Mom's family.

This year, instead of getting each other gifts, we did a White Elephant exchange. One of the presents was a pack of steaks. My cousin Brooklyn was a big fan.

My cousin Jackson got a little too creative when it came to make-your-own-pizza.

Getting cozy with Brooklyn and my Uncle PJ. And yes, I'm still wearing the outfit I wore the day before. Don't judge me.

Grandpa (we call him Grumps) devised a fun game using some hose, bowling pins and oversized marbles. As much as we enjoyed it, I think he had more fun with it than anybody else did.

Anyway, Christmas definitely lived up to the hype. Lots of fun with both sides of the family, a good haul of presents (no pony this year, but maybe next year), and plenty of time spent with Mom and Dad, since Dad had a few extra days off work.

I'm already looking forward to next Christmas, but until then, I hear there's another holiday on the way in just a day or two. I've got my two-month checkup this morning, and then it's off to Lake Cavanaugh to celebrate New Year's with some friends.