Xmas was awesome! My mom and sister came over around 10:30 yesterday and helped us get ready (mostly by holding the baby, leaving our arms free to gather our belongings), then we caravaned over to Holly's house up at the horse ranch. After we ran around a little getting food started, we all settled in to open presents galore. Everyone had a good haul -- I walked off with pretty much every Peter Wimsey mystery, and some DVDs and games I've been wanting (a set of Preston Sturges DVDs!), and good books and t-shirts and cookware and such. But the best was a total surprise, a really gorgeous flask from Heather (that comes in a nice wooden box with a couple of steel shot glasses). Yay, a flask! That's how I'll survive future PTA meetings! (Mom got us an awesome video camera, too, though we opened it a while back to start filming River.)

Heather loved the jewelry I got her. Love love loved it, and was amazed that I'd managed to buy stuff that suited her taste without prompting or guidance. (Thanks again to Steph Burgis for making me aware of the existence of Etsy.com, where I bought most of it!)

After present-opening we feasted on the usual stuff. Turkey, potatoes, cranberry sauce, assorted casseroles and salads. Absolute good-food overload. In the late afternoon Heather's mom led a few of us on a little walk to an amazing overlook that provides unobstructed views of downtown Oakland, the Bay, the Bay Bridge, San Francisco, the Golden Gate... it's one of the best views I've ever seen up here. It was rather misty and hazy, but we could still make out the Golden Gate Bridge. I can't wait to go up there on a clear day.

I got to spend some nice quality time with my mom and my sister, separately and together, which was very welcome. And River Shaw? Was a perfect angel, pretty much. When he was awake he cooed at people, and he slept through present-opening. He was awake during dinner, but not too fussy. Apart from a couple of sartorial mishaps (pee on his special Xmas outfits!) and some "Holy crap I'm wet!" screaming, he was a good and easy baby.

A contender for best Christmas day ever. If only our nephew had been there! But he's coming back on Friday, and we're going back up to the ranch on Saturday to do his Xmas, so we'll get some of that joyful kid-tearing-apart-his-presents fun anyway.

Now, yawn, 7 a.m. on Boxing Day approaches, and a River is stirring in the other room. Happy Holidays All!