Christmas with Family

The best place to be at Christmas, is with family, and we are definitely enjoying every minute. 

On Thursday, Kim and I went to Somerset with Jay and Mande. After a morning of shopping, we had a tasty lunch at Brio, an Italian restaurant in the mall, and then headed out to a few other stores before calling it for the day.

Thursday night Bill and I, and the kids, ate dinner at Sweet Lorraine's with Jay and Mande, and then headed down to the Fox to see 'White Christmas'. It was a fun musical with lots of impressive tap dancing. It was the first stage show that the kids have been to (except Ethan, who went to Sesame Street Live when he was 2 years old) and they seemed to enjoy it. I hope that they will continue to do things like this as they get older, and maybe even pass the love of the arts on to their children. 

Friday, besides being the day of the snowstorm (I haven't really missed these in Shanghai), was my neighbor's cookie exchange/girl's night out, and I had a nice time catching up with people that I only see a few times a year. Susie always has tasty appetizers, to go along with all of the yummy cookies, and gives a gift to us each year that could rival Martha Stewart's creations.

On Saturday, Kim and the kids came over to visit, followed by Jay and Mande. After chatting and snacking for a while, Mark, Jay and Bill headed down to dinner, and the Red Wings game; a Christmas gift from Jay, to Mark and Bill. Bill came home saying it was a good time had by all. They had great seats, and the Wings won, too!

Finally, last night my parents arrived in town, so this morning we headed over to their house to visit. It was great to see them, and I am so glad they came back from their winter home for Christmas this year. Having them in town, as well as Jay and Mande, who are not usually here for the holidays, has really made this Christmas memorable.

After lunch we moved on to Kerri's house to celebrate Alainya's 3rd birthday. She is a fun kid, and always puts smiles on our faces, just as Shane, Jeremy, and Adam do. We have missed them all, and are really enjoying our time with them.

Our holiday here is going faster than we would like, and before we know it we will be heading back to Shanghai, but we are cherishing every moment we have here.