Clara's First Christmas

Well, for a minute there, I was starting to wonder if Clara's first Christmas might closely resemble that of "Away in the Manger", but with the power restored to our house, we were grateful to spend Christmas Eve at home hosting Clara's paternal grandparents. Greg made a delicious meal (with Clara's favorite: baked sweet potato), the Bamfords brought a fantastic bottle of wine, the Columbia City Bakery provided the bread (including stollen--yum!), and I whipped up some cookies. Clara opened some gifts, saving the rest for Christmas morning. While she's been enjoying all of her gifts, truth be told, she was most taken with the boxes, ribbons, bows, and paper. The only black spot on the holiday was an unfortunate bout of flu that kept Clara's Aunt Amy and Uncle Kurt from joining us. Thankfully, Amy has recovered and will be coming over tonight for a little auntie-niece bonding time, while Greg and I will be having an adults-only dinner at the Columbia City Ale House. Forget the swans a-swimming and the geese a-laying: For my 12 days of Christmas I want a massage (or 4, courtesy of a gift card from my darling husband to Dahlia Spa!) and a night out. "In the Bleak Midwinter" is looking brighter all the time.