Whew!  Christmas is such a whirlwind holiday once it finally comes.  We actually had a mellow Christmas day, aside from the flurry of wrapping paper.  After the little scare with Bella's tummy on Friday, I was just happy to still be at home.  Molly and Nancy stayed overnight on Friday night, and we went to Christmas Eve service at the church in Binghamville.  It was a wonderful service with a fantastic children's pageant.  The kids (and parents) had obviously worked very hard to get ready, and it paid off.  Even Bella was mesmerized, and we were all very impressed.  It was really nice to be there with the church community that was so supportive of us while Bella was in Pittsburgh.  There were a lot of prayers said for her during that time, and I know a lot of them came from that church!
Dad and Julie came up to the house on Christmas day, and Mom and Jim showed up a bit later.  We had ate well all day, making dinner a sort of secondary event.  The only thing that actually got cooked that I had planned on was the ham.  We have a lot of vegetables in our fridge!  Dad and Julie stayed late, and we played Cranium with them and Molly.  I haven't had a grown-up board game night in ages, and it was a blast.  The excessive amount of vodka that was consumed over the course of the day may have made the game a bit more exciting!
Sunday we had a wonderful Conant Christmas up at MaryLynn and Terry's house.  We mixed things up this year, and ate early so we could go sledding.  It was a great plan, and everyone had a roaring good time, even the old folks!  Actually, I think you could say "especially the old folks"!  Even though it was cold, we all had a great time stretching our legs.  We wrapped up with a bit of caroling outside the window for Gram, and then had a fun yankee swap.  This year's theme was socks, and it was a good one.  I think almost everyone made off with at least one great pair of socks.  Well, David might not wear his leg warmers too often, but I bet they'd look cute with a nice pair of work boots.
Most of all, it was simply wonderful to be with family and friends.  So many people hadn't seen Bella since her transplant, and everyone was amazed at how great she looks.  Her tummy looks great (turns out is was an infection, not a hernia, which we discovered when the abscess ruptured and drained on Sunday morning), and she was cuddly with everyone all weekend.  It meant so much to me to be able to spend time with so many of the people who helped us get through the past few months, and I hope that seeing Bella happy and healthy and our family together made them happy, too.
Well, only a few days until 2011, and I can't wait.  There's got to be something good in store for us in the coming year, I just know it.  Just being together as a family with the prospect of a healthy year has me looking forward to 2011 more than any other new year I've seen! 
Here are some cute and funny holiday pics to make you smile!