A Christmas Story, Chapter 3: Christmas Eve

So I'm officially less than a week behind in my blogging! Hooray me! We've finally made it to Christmas Eve. Oy vey, that's seems like a year ago. Here's what I remember...

A traditional Christmas Eve in Eldo always includes a caroling expedition, whereby the sprier and more youthful members of MHC (which stands for Marrable Hill Chapel, btw) pile into several large vehicles and visit the homes of the more "mature" members of the church to serenade them with rousing renditions of various holiday favorites. It is always a fun time, which promised to be even more special this year since Alex would be tagging along.

We lazed around the house for a bit before we got ready for the day. A worked on his sitting and his pushups as we cheered him on. He has started to lift his hips off of the ground, as well, which we presume is another step towards being able to crawl. I tried to snap a picture of him in action, but that's a lot harder than it sounds.

Once we were done being lazy, we got dressed for our big day of caroling and Auntie L helped A put his shoes on. I thought they were just his regular Pumas, but they must've been his chocolate flavored ones cuz he couldn't keep his foot out of his mouth.

In order to be in tip-top shape to perform, us carolers met at Pizza Inn to fuel up before hitting the road. A had not been sleeping well while at Grammy's - waking at 4am, taking way short naps during the day - so I wasn't sure how he would fare when it came to dragging him in and out of the car seat. He took another "snap" while at the Inn, first passing out on Grammy's shoulder, then sleeping through a mid-snooze transfer to Mommy's lap.

Although his "snap" only lasted a total of about thirty minutes, he seemed to be well-rested and as bubbly as ever when we strapped him into the car and headed to the first stop of our caroling tour.

This year we stopped at several residences and forwent the nursing home in favor of a hospice. It was such a gift to be able to spread some holiday cheer to the residents.

After a long but fulfilling day of caroling, we went back to the house where, as per tradition, Mamaw Meador came over to eat supper and give us our Christmas gifts. Alex got to open his very first Christmas present, a privilege that he took very seriously. When it came to ripping that sucker open, he was a natural!!

Great Whistling Hippos, Batman! The box contained four brightly colored hippos that fit into plastic inner tubes that float in the tub. Oh, and they "whistle" when you tap them on the head (although it's really more of a "toot" than a whistle). And they are made by a toy company called ALEX. What a coincidence, huh?

He played with them on the floor for a bit, then we sent him off to the tub for the real test. By the look of that smile, I'd say they're a hit!

Tim and I got lots of good things, too, and Murphy got to rip up all of the paper, which is the best present ever as far as he's concerned.

Aunt Sylvia had stopped by for the festivities and Mamaw Evans made an appearance to say goodbye before she left for Texas.

Then off to bed we went, to visions of dancing sugar plums...