First Christmas as Husband and Wife :)

Our first Christmas together as a married couple was much more quiet than previous years, yet so special because we were together.  This year we weren't busy traveling or visiting family; it was much more laid back.  But it was still a good Christmas nonetheless! We had good chats with our family over the phone and skype and we watched a bunch of good ol' classic Christmas movies.

We went on a few shopping trips during the weeks leading up to Christmas and ended up buying more things for ourselves than expected. So Pat and I decided that we didn't need to spend more money on large Christmas gifts for each other. Instead we bought small gifts so we still had something to open on Christmas morning.

Ornament sent by my parents just in time for Christmas

New scarf and wine aerator from parents :)

We had our friends, Ersin and Yildiz over for Christmas dinner. They were staying in Boston for the holidays as well. This was my first attempt at Christmas dinner, and most importantly, roasting a whole chicken.

I was a little nervous cooking for guests and potentially making them sick...in more ways than one. So to lessen the chances of food poisoning, I decided that I would not stuff the chicken and instead made the stuffing on the side. I must say I had a lot of fun. I used our new digital meat thermometer that we got as a wedding gift, which beeps when it's reach the perfect temperature. So awesome! I even enjoyed preparing the bird, although I washed my hands so many times that they are now dry. I coated the chicken with butter, thyme, and rosemary. I even put butter under the breast skin to make it extra moist. Then I stuffed the inside with half an orange, garlic, and more herbs.

On the menu:

• Apricot baked brie
• Whole roasted chicken on a bed of carrots, celery, onions, and leeks
• Mashed potatoes
• Puréed butternut squash
• Stuffing
• Gravy
• Banana roll (so delicious and very pretty) made by Yildiz
• Wine!!!
• Rum and eggnog :)

And the verdict is....a success! The chicken was very moist and the gravy I made from scratch was the best Pat ever had...or at least that's what he told me. We served our dinner on Pat's Grandma's china and used my Grandma's silverware. So it was extra special!!

We got a little over-excited to eat and forgot to take some pictures of our food. This picture of the already carved chicken is the only one we have....so use your imagination :)