Fertitta, Party of Five: 5 Days of Christmas {Christmas Dinner}

"One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day. Don't clean it up too quickly."
- Andy Rooney

Our mess wasn't very big this year, but it was still a mess. And despite Sam trying to convince me to not even sweep the floor (really? just leave the bits of paper and glitter and twist ties? Every wife everywhere just let out a collective eye roll. haha), I went through and did a quick pick up of the house while H + WK recovered from their exciting morning. There are benefits of not being able to sleep a wink on the night before Christmas!

After our first Christmas morning in our own home a few years ago with just our little party of then three, we realized that first half of the day leaves plenty of time to celebrate together and make our own memories. By 3:00, we were just looking at each other, like, what now? And since at that same Christmas, the entire Smith family had to watch as the Fertitta family exchanged gifts for two hours, we decided maybe a Christmas evening get together might be just the answer. So, for the last two years, we've had a Christmas dinner at our home. Here's a little peak of a few of our decorations this year.

What mess we didn't make in the morning, we made up for in the evening. Here's a little before and after. :)

4:00 p.m.::

And 8 p.m.:

We had quite the potluck Christmas menu, and after our bellies were full from ham, potatoes, broccoli casserole, shrimp, and other ~~lowfat, low calorie~~ yummy food, we started the gift giving marathon. The five kiddos got to open all theirs first, and after they had as many toys as they could stand, we sent them downstairs to the basement to play while the adults started their exchange. The last few years, we have drawn names so that each person only buys for one other. Hallelujah! :) The Christmas before we instituted this, Sam and I bought for 18 family members. It was insane. And expensive. So, I love being able to focus on just one person (ok, two really, because I shop for Sam's 'name', too) and get them some nicer, bigger things. Here are a few pictures from the after dinner festivities: