Happy New Year!

We had a great Christmas! On Christmas Eve, we went to Raleigh to spend time with Drew's family. Graham stayed up extra late to socialize with his relatives, but around 9, we put him to sleep in his pack 'n play so that we could continue hanging out, eating dessert, and watching DVDs of old Christmas cartoons. Eventually, we had to wake up the sleeping baby to take him back to Apex. The next morning, Drew carried Graham down the stairs to see what Santa had delivered.... a toy truck, a book, a musical hammer, and a lion puppet. The truck was definitely the favorite. Then, we rushed (too much rush) to finish packing and headed to Stedman for lunch with the Gainey clan. Graham did a great job sitting at the table in his portable high chair while we ate. He had a good time playing with wrapping paper and his toys during the opening of about a hundred gifts (slight exaggeration). We think next year he'll be able to take over my role as gift distributor. Without a midday nap, Graham fell asleep as soon as we loaded up to head to my parents' house in Clinton. Later that day, my mom's side of the family came over for a candlelight Christmas dinner. It wasn't supposed to be a candlelight dinner, but a power outage set the festive mood for us. Graham seemed to enjoy having his little second cousins to play with in "the hexagon" (a playpen).

The day after Christmas, we woke up to see LOTS OF SNOW! Even though it created some inconveniences (like another power outage), the experience was worth it. We passed up the Christmas leftovers to drive around and find a place that was open for lunch. Andy's it was. After lunch, we built a rugged snowman for Graham. I made a mental note to figure out what people use to decorate snowman faces, and keep those things on hand in case we ever get a chance for a do-over. Unfortunately, the snow prevented Drew's grandparents from making their drive from VA to Raleigh. Hopefully we'll have a late Christmas get-together with them soon. It was probably for the best though, because we brought a stomach virus back to Apex with us that Graham and I really struggled with. I think we're finally well though - just in time for 2011!! Last New Year's Eve, Drew and I went out for steaks and then put a crib together. This New Year's Eve, we heated a frozen dinner and watched a movie from the floor (our sofa cushions were in the washing machine because Graham threwup all over them). Then, as the Times Square ball was dropping on tv, we listened to our little boy wake up and cry from his crib! Our lives have definitely changed a lot, and we realize that we are so blessed for what we've been given.