The Holidays!

After wrapping tons of presents today, it finally set in - its Christmas time!!!

I got the rest of my Christmas shopping finished, along with the rest of North Carolina...and I managed to wrap all them, with bows, this afternoon too. It definitely helped that Joseph spent the day with friends and let me shop & wrap in peace :)

We have received a few special ornaments the last week or two. Our first was a silver "Our First Christmas" star from my parents. They made the mistake in writing both of our names on the package, so when I got home it was laying on the counter. ...um, its my parents! Doesn't that mean that I get to open it?! Guess not... Then we received 3 glass white crane ornaments from my Aunt. For my bridal shower, my sister, my aunt & I sat around my parents' kitchen table and folded paper cranes. At first I thought it was going to be impossible; however, I turned out to be quite the pro :) ...or something like that. They really are special ornaments - Joseph calls it our Crane Family, because there is one large one (Him), one medium sized one (Me), and a small one (a baby crane...but that's not happening quite yet). Then our realtor brought over a "Our First House" ornament last week. Our Christmas tree isn't looking so naked anymore!

Anyway...
I am pumped about the next two weeks...
This weekend my parents are coming in town on Saturday and taking us to see The Raleigh Ringers. It will be the first time they've been to North Carolina & seen our house, so I "cleaned cleaned" this weekend for them. Then on Sunday Jarron flys back home for a few weeks. I cannot wait to see him and hear all of his San Fran stories.

Then next week its Christmas! I have to work Christmas Eve until 3, and then we'll be heading to Roanoke for the weekend. I cannot wait to see everyone, considering we only had 7 people around the table for Thanksgiving (last year we had at least 12 adults, for a table meant for maybe 6)...so I'm excited to see Jarron & my sister (and Chris, and Ella, and Fisher). The countdown to Christmas has begun.......