The Three Hour Christmas

Here are a few pictures that I took at our Christmas this year.  If you remember from my previous blog posts, we had Christmas on Saturday due to the bad weather on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  We decided that we didn't want anyone traveling on those bad roads so we packed Christmas in on our already packed Saturday.  Everyone started arriving around 11 as planned, and then we ate Christmas Dinner around 11:45, ate and did a quick clean up.  We used paper plates this year so that went pretty fast.  After that we opened gifts and everyone really enjoyed their gifts.  At 2 we headed out to Carlson's to decorate for the wedding so that is why I titled this the 3 hour Christmas as that is what we packed it into.  The shortest Christmas in the Steffen family history, but we enjoyed every minute that we had together.  Plus the wedding the next day was another celebration.  The first picture is of Sarah and my dad.  I had brought along my Elf hat from the Cookie exchange in case any of the kids wanted to wear it.  Well the two BIG kids did, Sarah had it on and then my dad.  When I took that picture, all I could think was is that Di will die laughing at this one!!!!  The next picture is of Antonio opening one of his gifts from me.  A singing dancing Mexican Dog that Di and I found at Walgreens and we decided that I HAD to get this for Antonio as we were about rolling in the aisle laughing at it.  I had it on my kitchen counter for about a week before Christmas and I would press his paw and I would just crack up laughing.  And I usually don't like things like this but this was just too funny and I couldn't wait to see Antonio's face when he opened it.  And he did not disappoint me.  His face was just precious.  He was laughing so hard!!!!  Antonio loved it and everyone laughed so hard.  And he wants this type of dog in real life.  So he got one for Christmas, only it is stuffed.  You see when I go to visit, he is always cooking Mexican food for me and just loves that I will try anything, and that I like it.  I always tease him that he is going to turn me into a Mexican and that one of these days I will be running down the street with a Sombrero!!!  And he will say, Mama, the women don't wear sombrero's!  So it is kind of a joke between us.  And this little dog is wearing a Sombrero and a Poncho.  The other day when Jenna and Antonio called, he got on the phone and was singing the song to me that the dog sings.  Then Jenna was piping in the correct words for the last line as he had those wrong!  Ha Ha!  And I am now officially a Grammy.  My beautiful Diana is on the left, next to her Dad although I have felt like her Grammy since I first met her.  Only now it's official!!!!