Meet the Family/Engagement gathering

So for Christmas vacation this year, we went to Chicago to visit Stephanie's mom side of the family. As Steph mentioned in the previous posts, we did a lot. 

However, for me the most nervous part of the trip was meeting Stephanie's extended family.  I had met Stephanie's mom, dad, and Mandy before, but this time I would meet the extended family and spend lots of time with her parents and twin sister.

Thankfully as far as I can remember I did not stick my foot in my mouth too many times.  After arriving in Chicago, Steph's mom, dad, and Mandy picked us up which went good.  I was still getting over being sick and they were all so nice and hoping I felt better.  I did observe from this trip that Stephanie and her sister do like to go shopping and so all four of us did some quick shopping before taking it easy the rest of the day.

On Sunday we went to Mandy's church which was sweet and then we went to Stephanie's grandma's home.   Stephanie's grandma was very warm and welcoming.  Later in the afternoon, we had a a small gathering that Mandy and Stephanie's mom organized for Stephanie and me.   This was a little nerve wreaking and I was hoping I wouldn't forget people's names.

Thankfully everything went well and it seemed like Stephanie's extended family on her mom's side liked me and were interested in finding out more about me.  For me, the football game on tv made things more casual and some delicious snacks/desserts also helped me feel more comfortable.

About midway through Stephanie's dad, Al, got up and gave a toast to Stephanie and me.  It was very welcoming and nice.

 

Further, when came to Christmas it felt like I made out great on presents, but also I had a new family that wanted to spoil me a little and was glad to have me there.