Home for the Holidays

Elsa thoroughly enjoyed her first holiday season...not that she had any clue what was going on.

The season between Thanksgiving and New Years is cause for a big celebration in our household, as well as cause for lots of travel. We wouldn't have it any other way, though. This year, however, was the first year that we would be unable to visit both sides of the family for Christmas. Between a new baby and a new job, we just couldn't spend two weeks on the road. We did make the best of the time we had and still managed to see as many people as possible.

Fortunately, we were able to go to Kansas City for Thanksgiving as usual, so even though we weren't able to go back for Christmas, we did kick off the holiday season in the Midwest. Elsa had a great time playing with/observing her cousins, and we're pretty sure she picked up a few tricks from them because when we got back, she was doing all kinds of things she hadn't before, such as standing (supported) for up to ten minutes at a time and sitting on her own. She also mostly enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner, although to be fair, mashed potatoes are much better covered in gravy. Maybe next year, Baby.

Our little turkey

Our next big holiday adventure was a few short weeks later when we boarded a plane for Elsa's first trip to Seattle. Jon had taken great care to select a flight plan that would minimize lay-over time and get us to the Northwest as quickly as possible. Mother Nature wreaked havoc on those plans when, the night before we were set to leave, we received a message that our flight had been cancelled. Luckily we were rebooked in a few hours, but that meant that we had a four-hour lay-over, delaying our arrival considerably.

Elsa did pretty well on the flight, although this was a much longer trip than her first flight, so she didn't sleep as much as we'd hoped. Honestly, though, if she had not been our baby, I don't know that we would have noticed her presence. At least, I hope that's how our fellow passengers felt.

Once we arrived in Washington, it was a flurry of activity with Christmas celebration after Christmas celebration. Elsa met lots of relatives, and we all got to meet our newest niece born the week prior. Our nephews have grown so much since the last time we saw them; it will only be a matter of time before Elsa is chasing after them, too. It was nice to be back, but we quickly realized one thing we hadn't missed: all the driving. We felt as though we spent a considerable amount of time in the rental car; good thing Elsa falls asleep quickly in her car seat.

Apparently Elsa had been a good girl in the first few months of her life because on Christmas morning, she woke up to discover that Santa had visited Grandpa and Grandma's house. Of course, seeing as how Elsa didn't really know who Santa was--other than a scary guy with a beard--I'm pretty sure her stocking was more for Jon and me. Elsa was pretty excited by her loot, though, especially since Santa introduced her to that perennial favorite baby treat known as puffs.

Yay for Christmas!

Elsa received many lovely gifts from her family, and we are all so grateful. However, the best part of the holidays was spending time with family (and friends as close as family) in the Midwest and Northwest, sharing the best gift we've ever received. We're already looking forward to Elsa's increasing joy and wonder during the holiday season in years to come.