Hughes Family: December 17th, 2012 – December 31st 2012

We have survived 2012! At times it seemed like we weren’t going to make it… And yes, I’m half kidding when I say that, but parts of this year were rough. As I have mentioned in the past the holidays are always extra stressful but we found time for a little relaxation and celebration (as we seem to every year). Here’s a quick (really quick) rundown of the last couple of weeks.

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We started off the holidays with some apple cider. That got us all in the mood to party.

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We headed north on Christmas Eve for dinner with the Lotts and Watsons. I wish I had some better pictures of the meal- it was incredible. That log looking thing on the right there is sort of like a cake (in case you were curious).

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Here we all are together. One big happy and very full  (in a physical sense) family. Some of us look better than others. Some of us intend to fix that in 2013 so they aren’t the one who look weird in net year’s pictures. 

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We ended up with a white Christmas! Before I got up the family was outside playing in the snow. 

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I worked my way out of bed about 9:30 (a wonderful gift from my family- sleeping in on Christmas). We drank hot chocolate and ate croissants and then…

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…the chaos began. Actually it wasn’t too chaotic. We tried to keep things low-key and more organized this year. Here are a few pics of the kids with their gifts. 

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The kids made Fran and I adorable coupons! Some of them were good for “100x”! I think it will be hard to redeem them…

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I hope our kids look back with fondness on our Christmases (I have a lot of happy Christmas memories from my childhood). And maybe they could even take a moment to reflect on what Christmas is really about. 

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Christmas dinner was spent with the other Hughes family. I love Christmas meals!  (I gained nearly ten pounds in the last two weeks).

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There has been a lot of snow lately (not just on Christmas), so naturally the kids did some sledding.

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And I spent a lot of time shoveling the snow off our driveway.That’s a a big job, in case you’re curious. But this right here- that’s a photograph of satisfaction. It snowed another six inches about an hour later. I was not able to get a good shot of the disappointment. 

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Fran got the kids a new playset for Christmas and it was installed a few days after Christmas With four kids she figured it was time for something a little bigger and a little sturdier. I think it looks nice (I haven’t actually seen it in person yet).

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On Friday we went to see rise of the Guardians. It was a cute twist on classic holiday icons. It’s not quite a Christmas movie though. 

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And Monday we hosted our annual New Year’s Eve party. Here are the party goers (we have lost some people over the years and, for the record, we miss them). 

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These days we start the party late and all indulge in ice cream sundaes and witty banter. We play games, we reminisce, we share our fictional resolutions and have a good time (even the kids). 

I told you it was going to be quick. I’m a bit behind, so I had to cut some corners (I feel really guilty about it… not so guilty that it will move me to any kind of action though). That’s it for 2012! I’m sure there will be some spillover in a few upcoming posts, but it’s over. Gone. Done. No going back now. Bring on 2013.