Is it 2011 yet?

HAPPY NEW YEAR'S EVE!

I am spending NYE at the same place I have been for 11 years now! Disneyland! I know I know. It's probably lame to a lot of readers out there, but I really have a ton of fun there. Especially at the hotel lobby bars and Downtown Disney. This year is going to be a little different...my GRANDMA is coming!!! Can't wait to see how this turns out. I hope you have a great night and celebration...be safe! 

The end.

It was time for one more Christmas celebration and we had our game faces on...see?

 During the madness at my parents' house...dogs even got in on the fun.

 See, Tess is stealing a toy...

Amigo, the family pet loved his catnip so much, he was high as a kite all day afternoon...looks a bit like satan here doesn't he?

Gidget kept watch of the kitchen/turkey dinner being prepared...she never misses an opportunity. 

 Dinner got started very early. The veterans took over the kitchen.

But Mr. Bumblebee had to help pick the huge turkey out of the oven, it was so heavy. 

Happy clan as we ate dinner...it was delicious.

Hanging out with my baby sister who is almost done with college! I can't believe it.

 Then my love, he looked handsome in his new sweater!

 My Auntie and Uncle with cousin and hubby and of course baby in tow came over the next day too. It was so nice to celebrate the holiday with them, I can't remember the last time we celebrated together.

 Enchiladas, rice, and beans....Mesicans all the way.

 So many presents under the tree again! We were truly spoiled this year.

 Oddly enough, the infant had the biggest pile of presents, right behind her was Grandma though.

 My mother crotched this beautiful afghan for the baby.

 The best part of this entire Christmas season was celebrating it with my Grandmother. She has gone from little sweet housewife to a pillar of our family. She's been so strong and resilient, I have really come to look at her in a completely new light. Meanwhile, she is still my grandmother. She is my childhood and watching her hold my cousin's baby made me realize that she is even my future. This was a very special Christmas, it was the first without my grandpa and it was the first where I cherished my family in a completely different way.

 I sure do love us!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Now this is a party...

How many of you go to celebrate Christmas with your family yearly...your family which consists of oh....41 people!! That is how many people are regularly at Bumblebee Grandma's house to celebrate the holiday. This is just a fraction of the house...

The tree was loaded. This household plays a game where everyone brings a $25 dollar gift for their gender and then we play a game of stealing and trading...it's very fun and sometimes competitive.

When you have this many people in one house, you have to get creative for seating, but somehow these ladies keep it so nice still. No paper plates here!

Look how handsome those boys are!

Mountain Man!! Clean shaved as he gets prepared to take the plunge!

Now that's a man gift...wrapped in duct tape, electrical tape, and wire...

Celebrating with my love and his family...

I can't get enough of him...how is this possible after we've been together for 11 years!

Of course the night ended with a special visit from a friend...

After this, we did the crazy thing and drove all the way back to the OC from LA only to return the next day at 9AM so we could sleep in our OWN house for the first time. We've worked so hard and so long to get into this house and we were determined to wake up and sit in front of our tree Christmas morning....mission accomplished. 

Start of the Chaos...

We started off our Christmas Eve at the Bumblebee's house. MIL, SIL, and I finished up cooking brunch while the boys played with their fun RC control things...surprise surprise. 

There is no other way to start a party at 9:30am than with mimosas. Yay MIL for being prepared.

 Isn't this a beautiful table? The bells you see hanging everywhere are Wallace Jingle Bells. MIL collected them for every year her and FIL have been married...31 years. When Mr. Bumblebee and I first got married, she started buying one for us. It is such a sweet tradition and I love all of my Wallace Jingle Bells, all 4 of them.

 See? She has quite the collection...

 MIL is quite talented at decorating trees, this is my favorite one in the house I think.

 Esp. the Christmas tree topper. How cute is that?

 Her decor all over their house is so personal and intimate. Those are photos of our family.

Before the chaos begins...

 We all take our normal positions...

 The aftermath...

MIL and FIL were way to generous this year. Mr. Bumblebee and I must have been very good bees. While the gifts are great, I love the time we shared with them. We don't get to see them as often as we would like. But every time we do get together, it's a blast.
Out of the whole morning, my favorite part was when I opened a gift from FIL. Like most men, they rarely have any idea of what gifts their wives have bought for the family, but this year FIL bought me something himself. It was a beautiful pearl stretchy bracelet. Without getting too mushy, it meant a lot that he picked it out himself, and on top of that...it's gorgeous and I can't wait to wear it. Thanks Bumblebee FIL!
Stay tuned for more holiday parties...

Ladies Night

It was time for my coworkers and I to have our annual Christmas dinner. Love having this to celebrate the end of the year and the beginning of our nice vacation! And boy do we know how to have a good time! We went to the lovely Bayside Restaurant with a beautiful view that was only semi obscured due to the monsoon that we were having at the time. 

I took a seat right next to my two favorite people.  

 And another one of my favorite people to my other side.

 Had to get pictures with all my favorite coworkers...oh wait, I love them all!

 Started of with their Chicken Barely Soup. It was a tad salty for my liking but it was still nice and warm for a rainy day.

 My coworker got the salmon with brocollini and bok choy. The salmon was perfect on the outside but not quite soft enough on the inside. The overall taste of the dish was sour but good.

 I got the Chop Chop Salad with Chicken. It was really good with a good balance of cabbage, peppers, wontons, etc. It was very spicy.

 I found most of the dishes to be unbalanced. They were all either sour, or salty, or spicy. There were all overshadowed by their one overwhelming taste. Oh well, better luck next time.
My coworker who we will call Monkey got a kick out of the little lemon in it's own baggy.

 The baby was so well behaved for a nice restaurant. Everyone just adored her, even the waiters made faces at her when they walked by. How could you not?

 Group shots!

 I'm so lucky to have such an amazing support system at my job. While we all have our off days and our days where we just don't know if we can make it...there is always someone there to back us up and give us the encouragement that we need. Our job isn't easy and it can be really trying but when you have coworkers who you have as much fun as I do with, then it's easier to get up and go into work, maybe with even a smile on your face.

I live you with my favorite picture of the day, blurry...but still my favorite.