Yup, it’s time for the annual gifts-we-got-each-other post. Allow me to do some voice exercises. Mimimimi. Ok. Onnn the first day of Christmassss, my true love gave to meeeee… well, we’ll get to that in a moment. In general we like to treat the holidays as an awesome time to spend with friends and family while being grateful for what we have, so it’s really not all about gifts at our house (people over things and all that). But our tradition is to make Clara a few handmade items – like her fridge and her latchboard – and then we get each other a few “tokens” of our affection (we usually spend around $100 on each other over a few different items, give or take). But before we get to those, let’s recap Clara receiving the play fridge that we made for her.
If you saw our Instagram pics on Christmas morning you already got a taste of how happy the bean was about what Santa brought her. Of all the stuff that we had set out for her that morning (we moved everything into the living room so it’d be near the tree to “open”) – the things she loved the most were the play eggs. Which makes sense, since she had specifically asked Santa for “eggs and ice cream.” No joke.
After about 20 minutes of play kitchen time, we migrated back over to the Christmas tree to see what else was in store for us. Note: about 70% of those presents were for or from friends/family members since we usually just exchange a few things each.
Clara ripped through a couple of gifts from other family members – stickers, markers, clothes, Legos, and a warm winter hat that she already calls her “pigtails” (thanks to those long braids on the sides).
And Burger got a bag full of his favorite bone treats among a few other tasty delights. He loves them so much he even got out of bed before noon for them. What a guy.
When the “kids” were sufficiently distracted by their bounty, Sherry and I took a moment to exchange ours. Sherry picked up on my recent declaration that I need new t-shirts and gifted me a nice stack of tees from Fab.com (my recent go-to source for them). I love Virginia, mazes, bikes, and NY, so it was pretty cool that they all had some meaning while still just being comfy T-shirts that made me want to hug my wife with gratitude for not buying me a tie.
Sherry’s recently been toying with the idea of getting a tattoo (I’m 99% sure she’s just messing with me), so (you know, to mess with her back) I got her some temporary ones from Tattly just for fun.
I even threw in a kids’ monster pack for Clara to enjoy with us. That ended up being the biggest hit, and within a few minutes we were all sporting matching ink on our arms.
I also got her one of these porcelain cottage lanterns from Ballard Designs that she mentioned in her lady-gift roundup (they’re no longer available, but they’re similar to these). I got her the big one and my sister and mom got her the other two smaller ones. Could white ceramic buildings be the new white ceramic animal? Sherry cooed over them for a while, and now they live on our mantel so I’d venture to say they were a hit.
Sherry’s very good at dropping specific hints (think emails entitled “think Santa knows that I love this?”) so I astutely picked up on the notion that she’d love this colorful pillow from House of Pillows on Etsy.
And last but not least, it wouldn’t be Christmas without Sherry getting some earrings. So I got her these emerald-colored ones from Kendra Scott (they look a little more teal in this picture than they are in real life). She loves that they’re giant and colorful and I love that they look like arrowheads. Everyone wins.
The picture above is actually at my mom and dad’s house, where we moseyed over to after our small-family-present-opening activities wrapped up (Christmas pun!) at our place. Over there we had a casual Christmas lunch with my parents, sisters, brother-in-laws, nephews, and even my aunt, uncle, cousins and their kids came down for the day from Northern Virginia. And yes, there was more present opening.
Clara’s favorite gift from “second Christmas” were these Make-A-Face stickers from her cousin Elsa.
It actually may be my new favorite present too, because watching the faces Clara puts together is HIGH-larious. Above you can see Sherry helping her with the placement of that first eye, but we soon learned that it’s far more fun to let her do it all. So we help her get the stickers off the sticker page, but the placement on the faces is all hers:
But like any Christmas, the best part was the family time that we got to spend through it all. Here’s Clara clocking some quality girl time with her cousin Elsa.
And here we are after discovering that we were accidentally dressed somewhat similarly. Minus the fur boots.
And perhaps the most amusing /unusual part of the day was the makeshift indoor playground that my dad set up in his garage to help keep all of the little kids occupied (there were 6 kids under the age five here, mind you) and out of the lunch-maker’s way in the house. As weird as it looks, it was a great way to let them burn off some energy (yes that’s a slow slide leading to an empty baby pool). So if ever you mistake us for being super classy or remarkably fancy, just remember this was part of our Christmas. And it was totally awesome.
That was pretty much how our Christmas looked. And you already got the drill about Christmas dinner at our house on Monday.
So, how’d your holidays go? What did you give/get? Did any special family events occur (we learned two of our cousins are pregnant!) or were any new traditions started?
Update: You can check out all of our favorite holiday decor finds here – many of which are under $15!
Kitty says
I’ve only got as far as the video, but I just wanted to say how delightful, thoughtful and polite Clara is. She is a real credit to you as parents. :-)
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Kitty!
xo
s
Kitty says
I love the presents you guys got each other, the thought behind them is so sweet! The t-shirts are really cool and I love that cushion.
I got a Hot Diamonds necklace and some new perfume from my Hubby which is love, and I got him a Starwars book, some tickets to a band he loves and a new speaker replacement for his Bass Guitar Amp.
Erin says
My 6 year old says Lasturday and has said it for years! Doesn’t matter how many times we correct him…just comes out! haha
YoungHouseLove says
So funny!
xo
s
Jennifer C. says
Love the play kitchen. That video was about the cutest thing ever!
Katy @ The Non-Consumer Advocate says
I love that Clara’s grandfather set up a play area in the garage for the kids. What a thoughtful grandpa!
Katy
P.S. I also love how clean and organized that garage is. But that is a subject is for an entirely different post. ;-)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, oh yes, he’s crazy organized and I envy him!
xo
s
Ashley@AttemptsAtDomestication says
So sweet! I love watching little ones open their Christmas gifts! :)
Erin says
So, I already commented, but I just watched your video of Clara and Oh My Goodness! She is so sweet!! Her speech is really clear, but I do love that you put captions with it.
BTW, what do you use for editing videos?
YoungHouseLove says
We used to use iMovie (free) but then got FinalCutPro to edit a book thing we had to do and have loved that (but we had to pay for it, so iMovie is great for anyone who wants a free option).
xo
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Erin says
Sweet, thanks!
Kristen says
The video is so sweet and priceless! My favorite was “lasturday” and how “proud” Clara is of her Santa gifts. Super cute!!! Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!
Sara says
Im totally stealing “lasturday”!! Haha Clara is so sweet and well spoken.
Lilli says
OMG! I just want to stick Clara in my pocket! She is the cutest. I love how she gets excited by balloons and wants to go thank Santa. Such a sweet child.
well this holiday I got some new running sneakers *much needed* and a few baking supplies. Humm counter productive gifts if you ask me. hahaha
YoungHouseLove says
Hahah!
xo
s
Janet says
Random mylar balloon tip – we decorate our kid’s bedrooms on the eve of their birthdays so that when they wake up in the morning their day starts off with a celebration. It is a really fun tradition, but can get expensive because the only balloons that last through the night are mylar. Anyhoo…I learned along the way that you can take a straw and stick it deep inside the hole where the balloon gets filled and squeeze the helium out. If you purchase a helium tank with a coupon they are pretty reasonable. You can just refill the balloons again and again. They look all wrinkly when you take the helium out, but they puff right back out when refilled. It saves a lot of money because those character balloons can get pricey. Some characters remain favorites for years so we can just continue to re-use those and add some plain $1 to make the room look festive and “new.” Maybe it will save any future Clara disappointment when a favorite balloon doesn’t reappear ;) Happy New Year!
YoungHouseLove says
Really smart!
xo
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Jessica says
Great tip!
The Dollar Tree stores in my area sell mylar balloons. They have a pretty good selection of generic birthday balloons (hearts, flowers, butterflies, cupcakes, etc.) and even a few characters (I know I’ve seen SpongeBob, Disney Princess, Mickey and Tinkerbell there).
Christina @ Homemade Ocean says
Oh man….I am OBSESSED with those tattoos….there goes another paycheck haha!
Carrley says
Hi! Sorry this is off topic but wasn’t sure where to ask you this…any chance you will be doing another book signing in Richmond again soon? My sister and I would love to attend one of your signings…we live in Richmond and missed your past appearences.
YoungHouseLove says
We’d love to do one! We’ll keep you posted if they add one!
xo
s
Kristin says
Yay-uh…we had a proud potato Christmas too. But I’m missing those days of moving box fort in the family room. We had a 3 box home for years The funniest experience with it was when our cat went in the door & a child followed him. He flew out the window in a BIG hurry. Looks like you guys had a great holiday!
Laura says
Oh so many things to be said! But I’ll limit myself to three. :)
1. I have a sister that is 18 years younger than me & love to think about all those hilarious early Christmases. The first year she was old enough to talk she asked for a fruitcake & a knife. What?! How had she ever even heard of fruitcake? The next year it was red rocks & blue rocks… & then she started pre-k, was exposed to lots of other children, & asked for a Nintendo DS. Sigh.
2. I must agree with so many of the others. Lasturday is my new fave!
3. We got my sister-in-law your book for Christmas & I may have read every single page before wrapping it. Whoops! Loved it & so glad she introduced me to your blog.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks so much Laura!
xo
s
Heather says
We started a new tradition of going to eat Christmas Day lunch at a Chinese restaurant. It was delicious, and awesome, and super fun! We had all our family Christmas’ the previous days before actual Christmas day…so it worked out really well. We think next year we will invite whoever wants in to join us, and make it official!!! :)
YoungHouseLove says
Wahoo! Good luck Heather!
xo
s
Laura says
Your kiddos, human & furry, are just too cute. The fact that the two of you are so hands on and haven’t handed this site off to a team of pros is part of what makes me YHL so much. I love the idea of having forums here & am happy to volunteer my time to help keep them fun & friendly if you end up adding forums to YHL.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks so much Laura, you’re so sweet!
xo
s
Michelle M. says
I second this. I have a rather quiet job, I could help during the day!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks you guys! You RULE!
xo
s
Kristy says
I don’t know, that indoor playground looks AWESOME!
Guylaine says
This is so beautiful!!!
You are beautiful persons outside and inside!!!
you are inspiring!Clara is lucky to have parents like you!
I wish a great 2013 year to you and your family :)
Guylaine
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks so much Guylaine!
xo
s
Megan @ Rappsody in Rooms says
You know what I like the best? That mini playground in the garage. That’s hysterical! Good idea too. What a sweet family Christmas!
Kerry says
Nice subtle Suze Orman reference … “and all that”!
I adore Clara’s delicious morning face and her hilarious word choice — “I’m so proud!”
What a delighful holiday for ya’ll. You deserve it!
Gil says
Awesome Christmas celebration!
Do you think you’ll ever spend Christmas with Sherry’s family?
YoungHouseLove says
We do Thanksgiving with them each year (traveling up there for that holiday seems to be easier when it comes to traffic, etc than doing that drive for Christmas). But Nonna (my mom) came down and spent Dec 18th through the 22nd with us at our house, so Clara got in lots of pre-Christmas time with her grandma :)
xo
s
Amy Brewer says
I LOVE the word lasturday as well! May be a new favorite for me. We don’t go overboard on gifts also, but our tree looks like yours! We have two big families and by the time we buy a few gifts, we don’t buy for all the adults, it looks like we have a crazy Christmas but we don’t go overboard at all!
Allison says
I got all kinds of fun kitchen gadgets, including a PASTA MACHINE. Winter hibernation is a go. :)
I also got some giftcards, and I just got back from the post office where I picked up the copy of your book I ordered with them! Wooo!
Glad you guys had a great holiday! :)
Maddy says
Let’s be honest, the winner in this post was Clara’s boots. Who doesn’t love some Flo-rida inspired footwear?
YoungHouseLove says
Hahah!
xo
s
Laurie says
The best gift I gave was to my husband. He always teases me that our artwork doesn’t have any meaning other than making the house look nice. I found an artist from Greece on Etsy who makes vintage bus scrolls. I ordered one from him that lista the towns in the state where we live (Arizona). I had it custom framed out reclaimed wood to keep the vintage look. It is beautiful and most importantly, he loved it because it is a history of our life here. Our 9 year old loves to play house and uses her kitchen stuff all the time. This year she wanted eggs that you could crack open and have the yolk and whites come out just like a real egg. I found a foam food set at Ikea that had felt eggs so I got her those and put them inside plastic eggs so she could “crack” them open and fry them. Love that my kid isn’t the only one who had eggs on her Christmas list.
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so cool!
xo
s
Emily says
I got my tattoo at 27 – a tortoise and hare on my right foot – so I say go for it! My father was mortified (grin), but it’s easy to cover up if I need to and I love it.
Jeanna says
Thanks so much for sharing your Christmas with us :) I love to hear Clara speak…….love her little “Clara-isms”, and she is so very polite!!
esther says
“lasturday” was just too much for me. SO insanely cute!! And not gonna lie, quite the catchy word.
Anne says
Fave part of this post? Grandpa Petersik’s DIY playground! That is so sweet and thoughtful. Also loved Clara’s sleepy face after waking up and “so proud of you” and “let’s go tell him thank you.” What a dollie! :-) Thanks for sharing!
Aimée says
Inspired by your amazing kitchen for Clara (but not blessed with the ability or time to make our own), I sourced a lovely wooden version for my 2 girls for their Christmas present. While they do love the kitchen, they were FAR more impressed with the giant box it came in and spent most of Christmas day and the following days each in their half of the box pretending it was a boat/island/house/cave/car/ train etc. They even insisted on taking their meals in the box on the floor next to us. As a holiday treat(?), we let them! – it keeps them happy, makes us laugh but most importantly they actually EAT without any complaints!! Fun to see your lot playing in the boxes too – hooray for keeping it simple!! #boxesmakeamazinggifts
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so sweet!
xo
s
Teresa @ wherelovemeetslife says
I love that you guys make it about family and spending time and not stuff. I think that is lost on so many. In our house it’s still not about the important things as much as I would like. That would be something we are working on ;).
This year my husband and I decided to spend all of the money we receive from family on a camera – woot woot – we were able to get a sweet package on a Nikon D5100. Now to learn to use it and start taking lots of great pics!!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so exciting! We love our Nikon!
xo
s
Rachel says
Clara is so funny! My husband was too excited about giving me my gift (a new computer!) so I got it a month early. Whoops!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, that’s so cute.
xo
s
Sara says
Do they basically have an extra kitchen in the garage? Because that’s fantastic!
YoungHouseLove says
The black things are storage items but the fridge and stove are just their old ones that they put in there (waiting for a craigslist pickup).
xo
s
Rosemary says
This was my first Christmas being married and my husband and I started a new tradition: exchanging books on Christmas Eve. We hope to continue the tradition with our eventual kids – everyone gets a special gift (surprise! a book!) on Christmas Eve. My husband got me… YOUR book! Perfection. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Rosemary!
xo
s
Jessica says
You should go for the tattoo, Sherry! What are you thinking about getting?
YoungHouseLove says
Eh, I have no idea. Maybe a tiny 7 somewhere (it’s a favorite number of ours since our wedding was 7/7/07 and Clara was born on the 14th, which is 7+7). I want John to get a 7 too. Could be romantic…
xo
s
Judy says
i think you need to frame those faces and hang them up!
YoungHouseLove says
They are pretty funny!
xo
s
Lauren Nicole says
My husband and I haven’t gotten gifts for each other at Christmas for several years. You guys always get the nicest stuff for each other and it has inspired me to restart the tradition of exchanging Christmas gifts with my husband!
Nicole Y. says
I found Elfster.com so my family did a Christmas gift exchange. So much fun! For both my bday and Christmas, I got paper punches, Design Sponge, Domino Design, Cameo Silhouette and the best part… your book!!! YAY!!! Can’t wait to get it signed!
Actually I’ve been meaning to ask is there any chance you guys will go to Los Angeles after your Palo Alto visit? Palo Alto is about 4 hours away from me, but I’m willing to make the drive unless you guys think you’ll be in LA.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw man, we wish we would be in LA! There are no plans for that currently but if they add it we’ll be sure to let you guys know :)
xo
s
Krissy says
Looks like you had a wonderful Christmas! I love that Clara was so proud! Very, very cute.
This year, we wandered around Walmart a few days before Christmas and took turns picking a few things we each needed and then bought them for each other. It was very green, no wrapping paper! And we got to use them earlier :)
Dlichten says
My dad gave the grandkids throwing knives — to be used under supervision of course. The look on their faces of surprised consernation when they opened up the packages and found a set of large bowie knives was priceless. Grandpa gave me real knives? But everyone including the adults had a lot of fun throwing knives at the target. A lot like darts except more dangerous looking.
Lita says
Oh, and as Emerald is the Pantone color of the year for 2013, John should get extra points for being thoughtful AND on trend! :)
heather says
I think a Proud Potato Christmas is a new thing. I kind of love it. It seems like you had a wonderful Christmas, I really love it. :)
We had a nice holiday as well, and a very white one which was so nice. My FIL’s friend brought oranges to put in everyones stockings, which was a tradition she had growing up. It was really cute so I think it’s something we’ll keep doing!
Round up – here: http://www.likeacupoftea.com/holiday-wrap-up/
YoungHouseLove says
So cute! Love the wrap up!
xo
s
Angela says
Clara’s really bright. I’m sure she makes you guys so proud. Happy New Year!
Karlee Davidson says
Am I the only one that wishes I had a print of Clara’s faces and could hang them on a wall in my house? Anyone? You MUST frame some of those for her room!
YoungHouseLove says
Hahah!
xo
s
Susannah says
I love it all! Christmas traditions and memories are the best! I think the indoor garage playground is the greatest idea ever! :-)
Allison says
Looks like you had a wonderful Christmas! I cannot even handle Clara’s cuteness! Nothing better than sleepy happy baby face. :-) She is just precious.
Debuse says
That was the sweetest video of Clara and I love how excited she was when she got her eggs. Next year we have decided that almost all gifts should be handmade because it’s not about the presents, it’s about being with family and friends.
Destiny says
I love your love! Thanks for sharing it with us.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Destiny!
xo
s
Jessaca says
I love that you guys keep things so simple. I’m sure you guys have written on this before, but it’s always nice to be reminded how you try not to overboard on things. I know I fantasize about all these luxury items, but then you guys pull off making Christmas be just as wonderful being simple. Do you guys ever just go: seriously, why can’t we have that already? What do you guys do when you start going overboard on your wants? Maybe that’s what makes you guys so unique and special. You know how to keep it special, fun, and awesome.
And oh my is Clara a cutey. Good job you guys on raising such a level-headed kid.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Jessaca! I think we just try to stay realistic about things and ask practical questions like “where will that be stored if we get that gadget for the kitchen?” etc – just to keep ourselves in check :)
xo
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Rebecca W. says
I got my husband 3 long sleeve shirts because I have to do laundry too often when he runs out of clothes way before I do. I wrapped them all up different to try and fool him. He is SUCH a better gift giver than me though so I felt bad about it.
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, that’s cute!
xo
s
Sabrina says
Did I miss the post where you got that charcoal (or is it black) chair? Do tell! I need a chair just like that for my living room!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yeah, here ya go: https://www.younghouselove.com/2012/08/theres-a-new-chair-riff-in-town/
xo
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