Christmas 2010

I didn't sleep well Thursday night. Not at all. In fact, I woke up about every hour.

Truth is, I was so excited for Christmas that I couldn't sleep.  I woke up every hour only to wake Peter up and ask if we could go downstairs and open presents. "Not yet?" "How about now?" "I'm so excited! Now?"  Finally at 5:45 (I am a child) we started a fire, turned on Christmas music, and our first Christmas morning began. And it really was special.

He did the greatest job ever on my stocking-- it was filled with nearly 30 different tiny things, and all things I wanted. He showered me with new clothes, 2 pairs of boots, gloves, a wallet and more.

Peter got clothes, shoes, an engraved Zippo lighter, clothes, an antique cigarette case, gloves, candy, clothes. . . . . . .

We had a blast shopping for each other this year. It was so much fun in fact, that we both nearly doubled our "budgeted amount" for one another. . . oops.

Loxley got first dibs on opening his wrapped
bone first.

sadly, it took me a while to figure out how to
actually get decent pictures in the dark. . .

leave it to Peter to figure it out.

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Thursday afternoon we left to spend Christmas with my family in Detroit. Friday morning Daniel and Ashlee flew up from Charlotte-- it was so great to see them after 4 months of only Instant Messages, phone calls and a few letters.  Friday evening my mom invited over some neighbors and threw an out-of-this-world Christmas Eve party.  She somehow always knows what drinks to offer, what food to serve, how to decorate and set-up the house and who to invite. People stayed well into the evening, with the last couple leaving well after I was asleep at midnight.

No one's ever hungry at my family's house.  We arrived around 8:30-9 Thursday night and there was a kitchen counter full of food waiting to be devoured by hungry Christmas travelers.  All you have to do is open the fridge or subtly mention that you could use a bite to eat and she's whipped up something gourmet (and of course with a mixed drink on the side).

Friday night we had Christmas sangrias, punch, wine, a million varieties of mixed drinks, coffee, tea, bacon-wrapped water chestnuts, cheddar sausage sandwich bites, a variety of cheeses and meats, olives, crackers, cookies, Christmas popcorn, chocolates, nuts. . .

she's incredible.
oh, is that Daniel there?

he pretends to like me,
I pretend to like him.
(we also pretend to really hate each
other).
that sums up our relationship.

Aliza, Peter, Danny, Dad

the whole family.

_____________________________________________________________________

Christmas morning.

these 3 were never far from each other
 all weekend.

'Liza hung on Peter all weekend, and it took me till Friday morning to figure things out. 

Thursday night she asked me quietly, with a grin, "Sis, why does Peter always smell that way?"

"What way? Good, or a bad smell?"

"Oh! Really good!"

I explained how that was his cologne, it was called Ralph Lauren, and I love it too. 

Later that evening she sat by me and observed Peter and Nick talking by the fireplace. She whispered in my ear, "Sis, can you please ask Peter to move his drink so I can sit next to him by the fire?"  I didn't really think anything of it, but was also engaged in a conversation, so I brushed it off and told her that she should ask him herself. 

Early Friday morning I figured it out. She has a teeny tiny crush on my husband.  Hah.

I explained what I thought to Peter; he giggled, said it was cute and went to give her a good morning hug. 

Later that afternoon I decided to ask her about it and said, "Aliza, do you think Peter is handsome?" She blushed, then nodded, with a big grin spreading across her face. 

"Yeah, Sis, I do."  

"Really? How handsome?"

"Well, I think he's handsomer than fire."

I think so too. :)

Merry Christmas, Happy Birthday to me, Happy Anniversary to us, Happy New Year. Whoa, that's a lot of holidays in 1 week.

-A.H.