Merry Christmas to all, and to all a Good Night!

It's been a long day and this little elf is exhausted. But what a great first Christmas !

Christmas Eve we enjoyed a church service at Christ Community Church with Mom and Dad, where Max was very well behaved and enjoyed jamming to the music. After that, Paul and Lympi came by with this super cute ornament for Max (an owl, of course!!)



Olympia took some family pictures of us. I think she did a great job.



However, I think it looks like Bailey is thinking about doing an inappropriate scoot across the carpet in this one.



When they left, I got Max to bed while Chris prepared our traditional Christmas Eve German feast of weinerschnitzel and potato salad. YUM.





I really think Chris has perfected this meal. It was delicious!!

We capped if off with a glass of Mumm Napa sparkling wine as Chris and I exchanged gifts.



Oh, and Bailey got some gifts too! See, Dad, she's not a neglected and sad animal. She seemed pretty happy with her special "chocolate covered pretzel" and dog treats!



I got some awesome camera gear. Now I just have to figure out how to use it. As many pictures as I take, I ought to be a pro by now, but I'm still learning. One of the items is a fisheye lens, and it takes fun and cool shots like this:








I think I'm going to have a lot of fun with this thing once I figure out how to really use it!

So then this morning we got up and gave Max his very first Christmas gifts from us. He first wanted to sniff the gifts...or taste the gifts, not sure which.



I think it's really clear that he thoroughly enjoyed "opening" his gifts.










After Max had a nap to recover from all of that excitement, we headed over to Mom and Dad's for Christmas Round 2. It was as chaotic and fun as always...it gets louder every year and I guess it will continue to do so as more kids are added into the mix. As usual, Julie was the Christmas Elf, and she had an intern learning the ropes from her this year (Sam). Here he is opening his exquisitely wrapped gift from Chris and me!



Meanwhile, Natey used one of his gifts to read Santa the riot act. He had been scared of this Santa all season; I think he was pretty excited to finally have the upper hand.



Paul and Bailey did some holiday bonding. (I love this picture for oh-so-many reasons!)



Max got so many great presents, including this helicopter (notice those sleepy eyes - he was fading fast)



and this totally awesome baby recliner (baby approved for napping!)



(or for jamming on your new guitar!)



This gift-exchange business was so exhausting that the Elf-in-Training had to take a siesta mid-gift-delivery!



After all was said and done, there were some great gifts exchanged. But my votes for "Most Unique" gifts go to these two:

1. Meat Baster. (Argument could be made that this is some type of medieval torture device.) I love the way Max is looking at it like he's pretty sure he's in some kind of trouble.



2. Big A@# Candy Bar. Raise your hand if you think Mom could eat this in her LIFETIME.



So, after all the presents were unwrapped but before we ate our Christmas feast, Max found some time to cuddle up by the fire and read a book while lounging in his new chair.



After a quick stop by our house (and a nap by SOME, but not all of the Ludwigs), we debated back and forth about going to Mema's. The weather was iffy - a snowflake here and there, but Paul and Olympia claimed a blizzard at their house out in Greer. However, Chris felt confident in his driving-in-snow abilities, and so he made the decision that we should brave the roads and head on over. By the time we got there, we were able to experience a genuine snowfall! Max's very first snow ... and on Christmas Day!!

If you look closely, you can see the snowflakes in his hairs ... and even some snowflakes falling.


I never dreamed I would see a White Christmas in South Carolina, but Mema's yard was already white at 6 pm and it just kept falling while we were there. The weatherfolks are reporting that the snow is going to continue throughout the night and into tomorrow so it looks like there will be ample opportunity for Max to frolic in the snow tomorrow!



And so Max's first Christmas 2010 draws to a close...Merry Christmas to All, and to All a Good Night!