2014

ahhhh, it was christmas eve! i love christmas eve. it’s the most wonderful time of the year! every year, it’s at my parent’s house. we gather there for food, fun, and gifts!

hc and i got ready {while olive was napping away}. i was hemming and hawing over what i should wear. i wanted to be festive and fun but i couldn’t figure out what my ensemble should be. well, i got a little dorky and totally went all cheesy chritmasy with my outfit du nuit. red and green it was. it was a bit loud, bright, and crazy but i totally rocked it like nobody’s business {no comments please}.

olive’s outfit was a bit classier. she wore ralph lauren plaid. yup, the cutest little red dress with a plaid ribbon, sparkle tights, and a red flower pin. hello, she had to match her cousin’s outfits!

once we got there, we said our hello’s to everyone and i went downstairs to see if my sisters needed help with dinner {they were chugging along quite nicely}. in-between helping with dinner, we were visiting with everyone and clinking our drinking glasses on this very merry evening.

we did a lot of goofing around, taking photos at every chance, and just relaxed. a perfect evening to sit back, unwind, and slow down from this hectic, hectic holiday season. it was pretty cool to just chill with our family. i was so tired that i actually fell asleep sitting up on the couch. what?! i never do that, like never. just ask hc. but never say never ’cause i just did!

[red and green!]

[the boys]

[cheers!]

[i found this picture quite funny. mmmmmm, wine…]

[why, yes there is a tent in the middle of the room. and santa and rudolph were visiting olive]

[super auntie thuy and olive]

[tashina actually holding olive! or i mean, olive letting tashina hold her]

[sweet baby girl]

[silly faces]

after much waiting, dinner was finally ready! yum! kim always creates the most wonderful entrees. everything is always so flavorful and delicious. we had a wonderful seasoned beef tenderloin, buttery mashed potatoes, savory mushrooms, corn, brussel sprouts, and a crisp, fresh kale salad. it was all so tasty and good!

[christmas tablescape]

[dinner place cards]

[matching ralph lauren plaid outfits]

after dinner, our little elves changed into their pj’s. oh so cute. could this be any more adorbs?! we, of course, went photo crazy. after much admiration of them, we finally trekked upstairs to open up christmas gifts. it was so crazy and fun. of course, the kiddos went first. that’s the best part! olive, reagan, and bennett opened up all their gifts and ooh’d and ahh’d over all their goodies. the cutest part? olive learning to ooh and ahh herself! she would squeal every time we opened up a present…it was beyond precious to watch and hear her! i just about melted every time she did it.

[santa’s elves]

[this picture cracks me up! i laugh every time i look at it!]

[elf feet]

[gifts!]

[presents, presents, presents]

[my gift from hubby charming]

[prints from rifle paper co.]

[bose sound system]

[christmas booty]

[how many christmas presents can i wear?]

[pout]

[what a cool dude]

after the kids opened up their presents, all the adults opened up their secret santa gifts and had to guess who their secret santa was! score…i got mine right, it was tashina! ha! i’m so good. 😉 so, as usual, everyone tinkered with their christmas gifts and/or reveled in the kids excitement of new things.

thuy and i then brought up desserts and coffee for everyone to nibble on while we continued to play around with our new toys. oh what a night…it was a pretty awesome eve together. spending time with family is precious and it was definitely a christmas eve to remember! merry, merry indeed!

[pj party!]

xoxo