'Twas the Night Before Christmas...

...and all through the house, we're still stirring, but thank God, there's no mouse :-)

Wow! Christmas is nearly here! It's already Christmas in Ireland. In fact, our family there will soon be waking up to see what Santa brought. Here in Texas, on the other hand, we are super excited about celebrating Grace's first Christmas tomorrow!

We had a nice day today, getting everything prepared for Christmas day and going to Christmas Eve Mass. Martin is having a problem with his eye, so I drove him to work today. He had to work from 10 AM to 2 PM. Grace and I went to the mall with Billy and hung out at his place for bit this morning. After we picked Martin up from work, I did some cleaning and finished wrapping gifts for Martin and Billy.

Before I knew it, it was time to get ready for Mass. Martin, Billy, Grace, and I went to Christmas Eve Mass at 6 PM at the University Catholic Center, and it was a beautiful service. The kids did a great job presenting the Christmas story. Grace was awake for most of Mass and was, of course, well-behaved. After Mass, I subjected everyone to a round of photos in front of various Christmas trees and flowers. I can't help but want to capture every moment of Grace's first Christmas! My favorite picture was this one of me & Grace looking at the Nativity Scene. As always, you can see all the pictures at: http://picasaweb.google.com/amberfogarty

I noticed at Mass that Grace was really warm. When we got home, I took her temperature and was worried that it was 101.3! She's never had a fever before, and I was sad to think she'd be sick for her first Christmas. We gave her some infant Tylenol and lots of hugs and kisses, and two hours later, the fever was gone, and Grace was as good as new. We were so relieved!

Billy, Martin, and I had sandwiches for dinner and enjoyed hanging out together for the evening. We exchanged gifts since Billy will be leaving early tomorrow morning for Philly. Uncle Billy got Grace an adorable St. Ed's cheerleading outfit! I can't wait to see how cute she looks wearing it.

It'll soon be time to call it a night, but not before calling our Irish family to wish them a Happy Christmas! Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!