The day after...

The turkey is in the fridge.

All 8 tons of it.

The desserts are all still out on the table and it's just way too easy to grab a cookie here and a macaroon there as you wander by.

I'm sitting in my brother-in-law's GIGANTIC overstuffed chair - sideways with my legs up on the arm just the way G sits in it.

Chris is downstairs getting a little quiet time.

My mother-in-law is showering.

Breakfast has already been consumed and the kitchen cleaned.

My teething 14 month-old niece is down for her post-breakfast nap after an up and down morning of crying and laughing and crying and laughing.

The dogs, exhausted from all of the activity and from 24 hours of constant hoovering up of crumbs and dropped food items have collapsed into contented heaps in the living room and kitchen.

The living room is a chaotic riot of children's toys and sippy cups in various stages of being consumed.

My 4 year-old niece is wandering around from adult to adult looking for playmates and has snagged "Rhode Island Nana" (as opposed to "New York Nana") for a game of Crazy 8s.

The day after Thanksgiving.

Lovely.

And to think...next year there will likely be another Little One adding to the chaos and the fun.