Elise's first Christmas

Merry Christmas! This was Elise's first and we used that excuse to celebrate it as heartily as possible.

We began early, not only with aforementioned Christmas decoration viewing and Christmas cookie baking, but with a visit from Grandpa Les, Grandma, and Uncle Brian.

Both girls loved having extra family members to play with them (as did Mommy and Daddy). Elise zeroed in on Grandpa Les and astounded audiences with her brilliant (and adorable) conversations with him, consisting of exhuberant gurgles and coos. So popular was her performance that she went on to regale other family members in a similar fashion.

"Finally, I found a way to get some attention around here," she was later heard gurgling good-naturedly.

And for her part, Kalina greeted Uncle Brian like a long-lost friend. He patiently followed her around the house as she made all the preparations to feed forest animals, rubber snakes, and others, narrating her every move.

Of course, Grandma was equally popular, particularly for her upside-down watercolor artistry, which allowed Kalina to create a happy scene of cats, birds, butterflies and more.

And then the 2nd-biggest day of the year arrived: Christmas Eve. Elise was passed from one set of arms to the next as preparations were made for the big day itself.

When both girls were prodded/bribed into their Christmas dresses (colored marshmallows: special for Christmas!) and we were out the door to Christmas Eve church, the fun officially began. Not only was the service lovely and my girls adorable, but Kalina tuned in like never before. A simple dance caught her attention and she watched the whole thing, wide eyed and grinning ear to ear, seeming to hope everyone else on the stage would break into dance as well. Afterward, she said she wanted to twist and turn like the dancer. She will likely take ballet at some point.

On the way home, we ignored Elise's annoyed grunts and took a detour to check out Christmas lights. They were lovely and we all had fun trying to get Kalina to look out the correct car window to see the lights.

Shortly after our late supper of soup and Matt's amazing rye bread, we began putting the girls down for bed. To Elise, it was just another night, but we had fun building suspense for Kalina.

Yes, it was probably stupid of us to give Kalina an excuse not to sleep that night. We did, however, have good reason: it's Christmas! So I read her The Night Before Christmas by the Christmas tree, and carefully explained the Santa part of the Christmas story (having appropriately drilled into her the Jesus part), with emphasis on the "fact" that flying reindeer would land on her roof. I told her Santa would put presents in her stocking, and that Mommy and Daddy had a big gift for her. The girl could hardly believe her lucky stars. What a great idea for a holiday! Family, good food, presents, a Christmas tree, and reindeer!

As Matt tucked Kalina into bed, the toddler mentioned that she's excited. She also told him that her stuffed cats were excited, and would be meowing from excitement. As he closed the door, he heard soft meows coming from her crib. Precious.

I wish I could say we all slept peacefully dreaming of sugar plums, but I cannot (Santa may not visit next year if I tell untruths!). Elise, for her part, didn't do too poorly--she did so well, in fact, that Mommy got a 4-hour stretch! However, after an additional 2-hour stretch, my brain decided I'd had more than enough sleep for one night and pretty much kept me up after 3:52. Kalina didn't help, waking at 5:30 and needing to be settled back to sleep. Only the adrenaline of Christmas morning saved the day, and it took a while to get the full amount I needed.

When Kalina woke for real, our first order of business was to get her as wound up in anticipation as possible before heading downstairs to open the big present Matt and I had draped in wrapping paper the night before.

We realize we were a bit crazy for buying Kalina (and Elise--we're making Kalina share) the large Calico Critters dollhouse, plus play table, plus lots of animals and furniture for Christmas (and her next birthday). But we got a Craigslist deal we couldn't refuse, about 3 days before Elise was born.

Our purchase proved justified when Kalina, open-mouthed, ripped off the wrapping paper on Christmas morning. What a delighted little girl! She was even happier when we had her open a cat family and a living room set complete with books. I think she played a full half hour before asking to put the cats down for naps and we had her open a third present: a bunk bed set. And that's all she needed to keep her content for another 2 hours (it helped that Grandma, Grandpa Les and Uncle Brian arrived).

When Elise woke up from her long morning nap, she got to open a few presents as well (or, rather, sit watching as Kalina tore into them for her, "showing her how to open" the gifts). She seemed happy with her presents, and I'm determined to rescue them from Kalina's eager clutches so that she actually gets to enjoy them more as she gets older. Then we all headed out the door to Grandpa Tom's for Christmas dinner and general festivities.

I love big Christmases, and this certainly lived up to my expectations, with Matt's family, my family and a family friend celebrating together. Christmas miracle after Christmas miracle, though, made the day run smoothly, if not joyfully much of the time.

Christmas miracle #1: Elise napped in the pack-and-play! Not great, and not without some work, but enough that we could all enjoy Christmas.

Christmas miracle #2: No toddler meltdowns. As we were headed out the door, I warily informed Kalina that today would be a no-nap day. If we were to gauge it by her smile, this may have been the best gift of all. However, I knew that could come with a price: would she have to leave Christmas early for bad behavior? No she did not. Good girl.

The food was good, the house was festive and the company was jolly--we all had a nice day. Kalina got a bit tired of posing for "a picture in front of the tree with your sister!" but did enjoy being chased around as we tried to wrestle her into one anyway.

On the way home, Kalina caught a quick nap in the car, but Elise did not. And once we were home, both kids were soundly sleeping in their beds within 45 minutes, while the rest of us completely and utterly collapsed. Or maybe that was just me? I have no memory of the evening--I think my brain was finally asleep even if my body wasn't immediately.

Christmas miracle #3? Snow! It snowed overnight, covering every surface in white fluffiness perfect for making a giant snowman and cancelling flights. And so the celebration continued, as Grandpa, Grandma and Uncle Brian all stayed a couple extra days.

We also made it to the Hanks family gift-opening, during which we all ate as many sweets as we possibly could without alerting Kalina to our activities (although she was allowed a Christmas cookie, which she kindly shared with Uncle Tom).

And now, we think we have enough toys to pass the cold winter away.

We all loved Elise's first Christmas. Let's all do it again next year! But no sooner: Mommy needs a long winter's nap (Christmas miracle #4? Please?).

Elise's "Baby's 1st Christmas" ornament: a festive little giraffe (that matches Kalina's festive little teddy bear).