The Holidays

I'm BACK! Turns out my computer is still alive and kicking, just required a $40 repair! He's 6 years old and his age is showing but for now he's sticking around. I'm so happy to have my computer back and to get back to blogging once again. So, even though the holidays feel like they were forever ago, here is the post that I started before the sad crash of two weeks ago. Please excuse me while I play catch-up! 

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This holiday season was all about firsts: our first with Lola, our first in a home of our own, our first in Oakville. I'm happy to report it was all incredibly amazing.

As soon as we hit December, Sean, Lola and I got ourselves a tree and decorated the house for Christmas. We watched a ton of Christmas movies together, Sean even came home from work one night with a box set of Home Alone DVDs. It was easy to feel festive.

And we had a lot of holiday engagements. First, Lola met the big man in red and took her token crying on Santa's lap picture:

Then we had a Christmas dinner with my best girls from high school and the boys. It was soooo lovely to have everyone gathered around the table laughing about old times and drinking wine into the night. The boys had to put up with our retelling of classic tales that make us laugh until we cry but since we only have the most hilarious stories, I'm sure it wasn't that bad.

 And then on Christmas Eve we had 16 people from our family over for dinner. We ate and drank and played Head's Up, which was a great laugh.

Then on Christmas morning we headed to my parents house in our fancy Christmas outfits and the real festivities began. Well, the real picture-taking began that is.

The fun really only began after we changed into our matching Christmas jammies which we stayed in all day and all night. 

It was so magical, 20 of us sitting in the family room together, getting a home visit from Santa himself.

 

It really didn't seem like it could get any more perfect... and then, out of nowhere, Uncle Rob was standing up in front of everyone making an announcement. He said "This year is special because we are all here in Canada for Christmas for the first time ever but there's also something else that's special about this year..." Suddenly, without even processing what was going on, all of of us turned to John and Nicole and before we knew it, he was down on one knee and we were all bawling our eyes out. 

It was absolutely incredible to share the moment with them and we were all totally blown away. Not only did John pop the question in front of 19 of his future (very loud and obnoxious) family members but he also made a beautiful speech to my beautiful cousin Nicole as he was proposing. It was the sweetest!! Congrats Nicole and John!! Side note: AND THEN Nicole made me cry further when she asked me to be her matron of honor!!! (co-matron of honor that is but its my blog so I can advertise what I want when I want). You can now all refer to me as captain of the Reggio-Hirsch wedding. 

So that was Christmas day...then, the next day to continue the revelry, mom arranged for us to take a "sleigh ride" (/tractor ride due to weather) through the woods. We stopped in Christmas Town where a fire, marshmallow roasting utensils, and hot chocolate were waiting for us. It was seriously magical. Mom you knocked it out of the park. 

At night we ate fabulous dinners around a massive square table that sat all 20 of us. Then we payed pool, listened to music, and drank wine by the barrel. 

It was such an incredible, magical, delightful, lovely Christmas and I loved every second of it. 

Having been home with Lola for the months leading up to the big event, I pretty much witnessed the day to day unfolding of my mom's plotting and planning so I knew it was going to be a great one but didn't realize just how truly awesome it would end up being...Thank you mom for everything you did to make it such a memorable Christmas! And thanks to this beautiful, hilarious, boisterous, ever-expanding family, I love you all so very much :)