Christmas

We started off the weekend before Christmas with dinner and games with Scott and Sue and family.  We always have so much fun with them and I'm always so impressed that the the teenagers want to hang out with us.  And Sue is such a good cook.  The next day Scott and Sue's daughter, Lauren, helped Ryan out with his ski boots.

He got the boots last year and they bruised his feet and made one of his toenails fall of so Lauren said she could tweak them a little bit to make them more comfortable this season.  Or as comfortable as ski boots can get.  Then the next day, on Christmas Eve, we went skiing for the first time of the season!  We met Lauren and Billy and a couple of their friends and Ryan skied with them and Jenny met us and I skied with her.  And guess what....I am SO much better than the beginning of last year!

It was so awesome at Keystone that day because it wasn't really that busy and it started snowing halfway through the day.  I don't know what more could get me in the mood for Christmas than to be in the middle of a beautiful snowfall in the mountains.  That night, I made oyster stew.

This is the first year we've stayed home for Christmas instead of travelling back to Kansas and I wanted to create some traditions.  I had heard that oyster stew on Christmas Eve is something that people do for some reason and because I love oyster stew but never make it, I thought this would be a fitting tradition for us.  And how perfect after a cold day in the mountains.  I didn't have to worry about dessert since Sue had brought over tons of goodies.

Later that night we went to a late night service at our church.  It was beautiful.  It told the story of the birth of Jesus through scripture and song and at the very end we had a candle lighting with all the lights off while singing Silent Night.  The moment was so powerful and really moved me.

On Christmas morning, we woke up, enjoyed some breakfast (I think I made a chile relleno bake), and opened our stockings.  Two of our three pets were grateful for their presents.

We were able to spend the rest of the day relaxing and enjoying each other's company.  I think we even had a Wii dance-off competition since that was one of my presents.  :)  It was a wonderful Christmas at home, although we did miss being with our family and friends in Kansas.  We especially missed being able to witness the magic that Christmas holds for the kids, the quality time with our families and friends since everyone has some time off work, and the laughs that always ensue.  And this year there was someone new in Kansas for me to spend time with (and cuddle and squeeze) but since we didn't go back I haven't yet had the chance to meet Leslie's baby girl.  Even though we were sad on one hand, on the other we also were very happy to be able to spend quality time together and with our friends who live here, to be able to celebrate in our own home for the first time and start our own traditions, and it was nice to not worry about the time, costs, and perils of travelling in the middle of the winter.