An Unconventional Christmas

Well I love that you all loved my photos from Christmas! I kept last night's post short--and entirely photos--because we were exhausted. Here's why:

On Monday, the 23rd, I worked a full eight hours at the store (a little reminder: I took a seasonal job at a kitchen goods store for the holidays), and it was pure chaos. Thankfully, our customers were still friendly and not exactly frantic yet, but we were packed and I remember several dashes through the store to grab items for my fellow employees or customers.

Then, on Christmas Eve, I woke up early to work a quick four-hour shift, eight to noon. This time, the store wasn't crazy, but I was pretty beat from the previous day. I came home to wrap up a few last-minute Christmas chores and then we headed to Orange County (in tons of traffic) for dinner with Terry's family.

That day, I got my first fun experience with major aches of pregnancy. I think it was related to not working out in the morning, but my back and legs felt stiff and sore no matter how I tried to stretch, stand, or sit. I don't think I've ever felt so uncomfortable! (My mom warned me that it's going to get much, much worse...yikes!)

But still, we had a wonderful time with Terry's family and stayed the night at Terry's parents' house for Christmas Eve. Christmas day was all about presents, relaxing, a quick jog (which turned into a walk because it was SO HOT), watching Miracle on 24th Street, and Terry's parents' classic Christmas dinner of a Honeybaked ham, candied yams, mashed potatoes, and Brussels sprouts.

Yesterday, Terry and I woke up a little later to exchange our own Christmas gifts. I whipped up some French toast, we opened stocking gifts, and then we started in on the regular gifts. Then, sadly, I was off again for another eight hour shift at work, which was smoother and calmer than the previous days. When I arrived home at 8:30, I started in on Alton Brown's Overnight Cinnamon Rolls, which needed to rise for two hours. We ate tamales and relaxed with some TV while we waited.

And today turned out to be fun, too:

Those cinnamon rolls rocked

We busted out a quick, in-the-apartment arm workout and then took a 30-minute walk

Terry started a turkey (half breast and two legs) in the crock pot

We drove up to Thousand Oaks to visit with my friend Amanda and her mom for a quick chat, then went to Lazy Dog Cafe for lunch with Amanda

We talked about going to a movie but chose to chill on the couch instead. I started planning my 2013 in Review post (here's the one from 2012), and Terry worked on solving his 5x5 Rubik's cube (yep).

Tonight we're chowing down on that turkey Terry made, and then we'll head down to the South Bay to see Jenn and her family and hopefully see some Christmas lights (yeah...a little late). It's been an unconventional Christmas in some ways, but I'm just so thrilled because A) Terry's home and B) it's our last Christmas just the two of us (though I know we might miss these quiet mornings sometimes).

Hope you're enjoying these last few days of the year! I'm starting to think about goals for 2014 and reflecting on what a great year it was. Hope you are, too!