It has been a few years since we have been able to celebrate the year-end holidays without needing to travel. Paul and I are very thankful to be back in Colorado with both sets of parents.

This year, we spent the night in Colorado Springs with Paul's parents and brother's family on Christmas Eve so that Abby and her cousin, Annette, could open presents together Christmas morning. Although the girls had a lot of fun decorating cookies and playing together, sadly, the Newell Christmas tradition of someone getting sick and generously sharing with the rest of the family continued.

Nonetheless, the family time was special and is what celebrating the holidays is all about, right?

One thing I tried this year was crafting some of the gifts myself - making clay figurines and sweet munchies. I started small and made only stocking stuffers, but I had so much fun doing it I may consider continuing this effort for the years to come....if time and patience permit.

As expected, Abby received a TON of stuff, leaving Paul and me to wonder where we can possibly store everything. Our living room currently looks like the Walmart toy aisles - toys strewn all over the floor with no visible ground to maneuver!

Enjoy a few of our Christmas photos below. I hear Abby whimpering over the monitor and I should go check on her. She has been wheezing, coughing, and running a high temperature and we're keeping a close eye on her, especially at night. Her symptoms started Christmas day - a virus she most likely contracted from Annette - and although she has stopped wheezing, her breathing is still shallow, requiring her to take Albuterol with a nebulizer twice a day. Last night, the fevers started and it turns out she has developed a sinus infection as well.