Whew ...

That's the sound of me letting out a deep breath after all of our holiday activities. It was pretty much non-stop Ross-family fun around here from the 23rd to the 27th. And it's taken three days to recuperate! ***Um, okay, so it's taken me a week to recuperate ...***

We started our holiday festivities the Wednesday night before Christmas. My brother Christian had arrived in town from Denver the night before and we wanted to make sure he got in plenty of family time while he was here :). Lauren, Jason and Brandon all had plans to go to the Mizzou/Illinois game that night so we opted for an early dinner at our house. We had our first annual "Make Your Own Panini" night and I have to say it was a huge success. It was Lauren's idea and Lauren and Jason's panini press, but Scott and I brought it to life :). I made homemade tomato-basil focaccia the day before that we used for the sandwiches and then bought an assortment of meats, cheeses, vegetables, spreads, etc. to allow everyone to make their own. My dad smoked a turkey breast for us the Sunday before on his "Big Green Egg" to add as an option along with some yummy Italian meats. Lauren and Jason provided the salad, Brandon provided the beer and my parents provided some fudge for dessert. Just the right amount of food and some great company. The girls had a blast seeing everyone and they instantly accepted Christian into the fold. It was the perfect way to start our holidays off.

Thursday was Christmas Eve and we spent the day at my parent's house. There was a lot of baking to be done and my dad was eager to pass down our traditions to Millie this year. Millie got to help with the baking of the sacred caramel rolls that are served every Christmas morning as well as the preparation of the dough for the cookies that would be made the next day as well. Millie was a little hesitant at first, but as soon as Grandpa started throwing flour around, she was ready to get right in there and help! She even got her own special apron from my dad to wear while she helped. She and Merrill also got to open their Christmas jammies while we were there. Millie liked them so much she insisted on wearing them for nap time (and then for the rest of the day)! We ended the day with the traditional Ross Christmas Eve Dinner of dad's white Chicken Chili accompanied by cornbread that Millie and I had made earlier in the week (apparently I've been very into making bread ... Millie is a big fan of that being a hobby of mine, as is Scott!). We went home that night happy and tired and excited for Santa to come. We quickly made up a plate of cookies, carrots and apples for Santa along with a glass of milk and then got the girls to bed.

making the dough for the caramel rolls:


Millie really enjoyed kneading the dough and watched Grandpa's technique very carefully. She got pretty good by the end!


adding flour may have been her favorite part :)



After nap time it was time to make the cookie dough!

Millie is an expert at cracking eggs -- something she helps Scott with frequently when making breakfast!


A break from all the baking. Scott took Millie downstairs and found a Christmas cartoon on t.v. I think she sat like this for all of 2 minutes before getting up to play :)

Back at home getting things ready for Santa!


We had a relatively late start to Christmas morning. I was the first to wake up around 6:45, but the girls were quick to follow. Millie quickly caught my excitement as I proclaimed "It's Christmas" and proceeded to shower everyone with hugs and kisses and questions of whether or not Santa had been there. It was a little confusing for Millie, I think she thought that Santa was actually going to be downstairs. She commented that Santa was going to like her red jammies :). I tried to explain that we were just looking for evidence that he had been there -- like cookie crumbs and such. I'm not sure she totally got it this year, but next year she will for sure. And Santa had indeed been to our house. He left the cookie crumbs and the carrot and apple were nibbled down to nubs and the milk was gone. He also left a note for the girls. The girls got to open their stocking gifts (from Santa) and then open the gifts under the tree. They both had a great time and enjoyed their gifts. Of course Millie wanted to open each one and play with it right away :).


jingle bells for Merrill

Egg shakers for Millie -- these were her favorite instrument at our KinderMusic class this fall

a parachute! A favorite from gymnastics class :)



After presents, we had a light breakfast, got cleaned up and headed back to my parents house for more gifts, brunch, cooking decorating, playing, and finally Christmas dinner. By the time we left our house, it had just started snowing. We got just enough snow for us to be able to say we had a White Christmas, but not enough to cause anyone any real trouble. It was at my parents house that Millie got her coveted wagon. My parents weren't back from church yet when we got to the house and the wagon was under the tree so Scott and Brandon had to do some major distraction to keep Millie from seeing it before everyone was there. They were successful and as predicted, the wagon was the first thing that Millie saw and it was pretty much all she had eyes for the rest of the day. She instantly wanted to be pulled around the house! We did finally convince her that there were other gifts though and she of course enjoyed the all and once again wanted to play with each one as she opened it. Merrill enjoyed the gifts too, though not nearly as much as Millie. Next year :).


the wagon!!




this is an awesome present that my dad found -- a bilibo. The plastic equivalent of a cardboard box -- guaranteed to provide endless hours of fun! My dad also hit a grand slam with the teething toys he found for Merrill -- she LOVES them and I love that they are non-toxic :)!

LoLo and Jason did great with this high chair for Millie. The doll that keeps making an appearance is "Honey." Honey was my first baby doll that I got for my first birthday. Millie loves playing with her at my parents house.

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the snow in my parent's backyard


After presents came brunch -- complete with the caramel rolls Millie and my dad had made the day before. Christmas brunch at my parent's house is really a wonderful and special treat :). After that it was time for naps! We were pretty lucky with naps while we were at my parent's house, which was a good thing. Though both girls were still very tired at night when we got home! After naps was the annual decorating of cookies. This used to be done a day or two before Christmas (as these were the cookies we used to leave for Santa when we were little), but with people traveling and Lauren and Jason splitting Christmas between families, we've had to move the tradition to Christmas day so that everyone can participate. That just means the cookies are around a little longer after Christmas! We discovered that tube icing can be watered down and used like a glaze, which allowed Millie to paint the cookies (much like she painted her Christmas ornaments -- in fact there was a question of whether or not she even knew these were actual cookies ...). It also allowed the "big kids" a new creative outlet for decorating. We've been doing this for so long now that it was nice to have a fresh technique to try out :). Millie was a bit groggy from her nap and wasn't too keen on sitting and decorating for long, but she did do a few and watched as I made her obligatory stocking cookie with her name on it.

getting ready to decorate cookies -- just up from a nap and not particularly amused ... This apron and hat were from Scott and I and came with a book and CD.

very deliberate and serious about her decorating




Merrill keeping watch



My cousins Colin and Devin and aunt Cathy came during cookie decorating (the boys like to be there to decorate a few cookies and eat a few ...) and Millie had fun talking to all of them. After they left, it was more play time and then a nice dinner in the dining room with the whole family. It was a great way to end the night and the girls were definitely worn out by the end of it all.

Saturday was our day to be at home. Millie got to play with all of her new toys and I got to do some more baking -- a cookie cake and yellow cake for my dad's surprise 60th the next day. It was nice to have a day at home, even if it was a busy day. We headed back to my parents that night for dinner before Scott and the rest of the guys headed to The Paegent to see El Monstero (another holiday tradition, this one headed up by Brandon -- this is the third year Scott has gone). We had originally thought that the girls and I might do something with my parents that night, but everyone was so tired that we just headed home and all went to bed early.

cheesing it up at home


playing with her cool art supplies!

the cakes



Our holiday festivities ended last Sunday with my dad's surprise party. Unfortunately, snow made another appearance. While we didn't get too much here, most of my dad's relatives from Illinois were unable to make it down because of the significant amounts they were getting. So, our guest list was cut in half and we had TONS of food, but that was okay. We really enjoyed seeing the people who were able to make it and my dad was definitely surprised. My mom did a great job of planning and executing the party and everyone had a great time!


And THAT is why it has taken me a week to recuperate!! The past week has flown by, though we didn't do anything in particular. We enjoyed being home and spending time together and Scott and my dad did build shelves in the workroom in the basement. We had a little bit more snow and Millie got to play it in one day. Unfortunately, it didn't last long -- though the cold is still here! We'll post more pictures and stories of the past week soon. For now, it's enough to say that we really enjoyed the holidays this year with both of our girls, we loved not having to travel far, and we REALLY loved the fact that Scott was able to take so much time off. We are hoping for a fabulous and quiet new year :).

***Note: MIllie also loves her new Lego set, as well as all of her other gifts, we just don't have any pictures :) and of course, Merrill loves all of her gifts too! ***