Random Christmas Thoughts

I can't believe Christmas is coming up so soon. I am so happy! It will be nice to have the whole family together and enjoy each other. I wonder how Leala is going to do with the presents. Either way, I know she'll like the toys and stuff (whether she acts that way or not when she opens them, we'll see...). I am excited though!

We have most of Christmas eve and Christmas Day planned out.

On Christmas Eve Eve (yes, Christmas Eve Eve), I need to bake the chocolate cake needed to make the Chocolate Trifle I wrote about before. Christmas Eve morning, I will finish making the Chocolate Trifle, make 2 cherry cream pies, and 4 batches of cookies. The trifle is for my side of the family, and the cookies and pies is for Kevin's side. His family had the trifle 10 days ago, when I made it the first time. :)

After that is done, we'll get ready and go to my parents' house. Everyone (meaning both sisters with their significant others and Sean, my nephew) will be there, along with my parents of course. We will hang out all afternoon, and that evening, we will open the presents under the tree.

We plan to spend the night over there (it's not far from our house or anything, but it will make things easier). Then we wake up, get ready, do Leala's stocking and if there's any left over presents that she didn't open. Eat Christmas dinner (early, like around 11 or noon), which is pretty much like Thanksgiving dinner in our family.

Then this year, around 1 or 1:30, we're going to go and spend time with Kevin's family. He's is Vietnamese and Buddhist, as is his family, but the kids celebrate Christmas (as in spending time with the family and buying presents when possible).

Well, this year we were actually able to shop for things for his family, so we didn't do gift cards like we usually do. You have to remember that most of the time, Kevin was in Japan and came home right before Christmas.. And most of the time, right before he came home, he was on a deployment.. so yeah, everyone on his side just got gift cards. But not this year! We got to get them all stuff we think they'll love. I am so excited!

Oh, and this year, we are all going to get together and actually sit down and open the presents. Most years they don't do this, since they don't formally celebrate Christmas. But I insisted that we do open all the presents in front of each other, and they loved the idea. I am so happy about this. I can't wait.

I always set budgets and tell myself what I will and will not do and so on, each holiday season.. And each holiday season, I go back on it.. lol.. I don't think I did too bad this year, but we did go out today and buy one last thing for his family... my idea too! haha.. Oh well, I love to give. I really really do.

Now, for after Christmas.. I think we are going to go to a few places to try to get some toys on sale for Leala's birthday. It's February 2nd, so it's long from now.. We'll see though. I don't even know for sure what I really want to be getting her for her birthday. I thought about it a bit tonight, and I think since she is getting all the electronic type stuff for Christmas (stuff that sings and lights up and all that), that I might go back to the basics for her birthday. Stuff like puzzles, books, maybe blocks (if they have some I like for her age group), and maybe a tent type thing. And then some clothes for the new season. We'll see.. It's all a work in progress.. I should also start to think about the decorations I want to get too.. I had a list of everything we would "need" and it came to a total of $83.. just decorations.. no cake or presents.. haha.. so yeah, obviously there will be some revising done to the list. :)