Christmas Morning

As I've said before... I love Christmas! This Christmas was no exception. I was so lucky to be able to split the day between my boyfriend's and my family. We started the day off at my boyfriend's house where we woke up to the whole family enjoying a very relaxing morning. 

Zairis, Zairalis, and me Christmas morning

My boyfriend's sister has a baby daughter named Zairalis, and she is the apple of the whole family's eye; she is the first grandchild in the family, so she is definitely doted on! We spent the morning giving presents and helping Zairalis play with her new presents (because she is only 9 months old). She is definitely a cutie and it was so much fun to be surrounded by family on Christmas morning.

After the morning festivities, Zairis and I packed up our bags and made the 30-minute drive to my mom's house to spend the rest of Christmas Day with her, her boyfriend of 12 years, and my grandparents. Because none of my older sisters were able to make the trip home, it was an unusually small get-together at my mom's house of only 6 people. We had some very traditional German dishes for our Christmas dinner including Potato Pancakes (which I made!) and Chicken Paprikash. We also started the meal off with some bacon-wrapped scallops and kale salad (I made that, too!). We ended the meal with a delicious gluten-free apple pie, because my mother's boyfriend is gluten-intolerant. 

After the meal, we exchanged presents; this was perhaps my favorite part of the day! I got some clay bowls for my apartment and a yummy vegetarian cook book from my mom (so I'll be able to make her some food when she visits!), a lotion set from my grandmother, and a hot-shot tea maker from my mom's boyfriend.

It was such a fantastic Christmas and I am so very thankful that I had not one, but TWO families to celebrate with! How was your Christmas? Did you spend it with friends and/or family? Did your family drive you nuts, or did the day go off without a hitch? Did you have Christmas meal, if so... what? Did you even celebrate Christmas, if not... what holiday did you celebrate?

Hope you all enjoyed your holidays and are gearing up for a FANTASTIC 2013!