We had a fun and pretty relaxed Christmas Day. In fact, I don't think we even left our apartment building! First things first: I got to FaceTime with my mom, sister and dog Leo yesterday as they were celebrating Christmas Eve. Leo is the cutest dog in the world:

We then went downstairs to Matt and Lauren's apartment and had an epic BBQ dinner. I'm literally still full. 

First on the grill-corn. 

Next were the sausages, which I think is primarily an English thing as we would generally do hotdogs or brats, but these were SO good! Also, Lauren is a grill master. 

Throwing shrimp on the barbie. Literally. The most Australian moment of my life. 

They turned out perfectly. I used to be allergic to shrimp as a kid, but I had a few last night and am still standing so I think it's safe to say I've grown out of that! 

The feast. 

My plate: a burger, corn, prawns, sausage, potato salad, and coleslaw. Somehow I ate all of it. 

The table setting complete with Bon Bons/Christmas Crackers (not sure which is the official title). I think this tradition is primarily English/Australian as well. You grab one end of the cracker and the person next to you grabs the other so you're linked in a circle around the table. Then you pull and whoever gets the larger part of the cracker when it brakes keeps the gift inside. I got a tape measure (actually something we needed) and each of them contained one of these stylish hats, which we kept on all night, obviously:

Lauren made a delicious marshmallow, cookie, and chocolate dessert to top it all off. I'm sure I gained in the neighborhood of 15 pounds yesterday but YOLO. 

Finally, we moved down to the theatre in our building and watched The Interview. I can't say it was a work of artistic genius, but it was semi-entertaining. Overall, we had a great Christmas and are left with some delicious leftovers to eat today. 

The day after Christmas is Boxing Day in Australia, which is also a holiday. All my life I thought it had something to do with boxing the sport, but actually it used to be the day when servants and tradespeople would receive gifts from their employers. These days, it seems people primarily lie around and watch cricket. We probably won't be doing a lot of that (cricket matches are very slow paced and can go on for hours/days) but hope to get outside and enjoy the nice weather. 

Merry Christmas to all, and to our friends and family back home- we can't wait to see you in January!