AN: Here's another chapter for you guys. Two chapters in one night! Hope everyone likes it. Please R&R.

Disclaimer: I own no one. They all belong to Bright/Kauffman/Crane.

Chapter 10: Sophie's First Christmas

Chandler was released from the hospital the next afternoon and spent the next few days staying home and getting plenty of rest. His mom would take Sophie out with her for the day while he rested and Ross and Carol would collect his homework assignments for him from the college and bring them by when they visited him.

The next few weeks went by fast and before they knew it, they were getting ready to celebrate Sophie's first Christmas. Chandler went to the local outlet mall and got an artificial tree, stockings with his and Sophie's names on them, some cheap ornaments, lights, and a star for the top of the tree.

Chandler invited all his friends over the day before Christmas Eve and they spent the day decorating Chandler's apartment as Christmas music blared from the radio. They all took turns holding Sophie as Chandler, Ross, and Joey put the lights on the tree.

"Ok. They are on." Chandler came from behind the tree after he had plugged them in. "And they all work."

"Can we just start putting on the ornaments then?" Phoebe asked as she picked up one in the shape of a bell.

"Not yet." Nora came out with a small box and handed it to Chandler. "The start of her collection."

"Ok." Chandler opened it and saw a gold star with Sophie's name on it and the year, and the words 'Baby's 1st Christmas.' "Thanks, mom."

"You're welcome," she smiled as she watched Chandler take Sophie in his arms and put the ornament on a branch in the middle of the tree.

They all spent the next fifteen minutes putting on ornaments as Carol took pictures of everything. Chandler hung the stockings on the hooks by one of the windows as Sophie crawled around trying to get into everything. When they were all done decorating, Chandler positioned a baby gate in front of the tree so that Sophie couldn't get near the tree.

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A few hours later, Chandler was getting himself and Sophie ready to go to his work Christmas party. It was being held at a bowling alley on the other side of town. He was taking Sophie because everyone kept telling him that they wanted to meet her. And he invited his friends along so that there would be people there to help him with her that he trusted.

"Ok. We are ready to go." Chandler picked up Sophie after he got her into one of the new outfits that his mom had gotten her. He picked up the full diaper bag and grabbed the wrapped present for the gift exchange before they headed out the door.

Chandler pulled into the parking lot of the bowling alley and saw all his friends there waiting for him. He smiled when he saw Monica getting out of Carol's car with Ross.

"I didn't think your parents would let you come," he told her.

"I told them there was a party on campus that we were going to." Ross told him.

"Well, let's get this over with." Chandler led them inside and he found where everyone was crowded together in an area near the back of the bowling alley.

"Hey, Chandler." His co-worker, Todd greeted him. "You brought your friends. And is this your daughter?"

"This is Sophie." He got her out of her coat and hat.

"Now she's a cutie," his boss, Tony came over to them.

"Thank you." Chandler smiled as his co-workers went up to him to see Sophie. "Don't crowd her too much. She can get overwhelmed when she meets too many new people."

"We were going to start the gift exchange. Did you bring a gift?"

"Yeah." Chandler handed Sophie to Phoebe, who was closest to him, and took the wrapped present and placed it on the pile of presents.

"Ok. Everyone draw a number." Tony held out a box with pieces of paper in it and everyone took turns drawing a number.

"Are we going to bowl?" Carol asked.

"I'd like to, but with Sophie-" Chandler started to tell them.

"We can help you with her." Monica told him. "That's why you invited us."

"Thanks." He smiled at them.

"Is that the boss' son that you keep telling us about?" Joey spotted a kid standing behind Tony next to an older woman, who Chandler assumed was Tony's wife.

"Yep. That's Jimmy." Chandler told them. "Don't do anything. I want to enjoy myself tonight."

"Who has number 5?" Tony called.

"Oh. That's me." Chandler went to the pile and picked out a small box and went back to his friends as the rest of his co-workers picked their presents.

"What'd you get?" Phoebe asked as he opened the present and opened the box to find a picture frame and a gift certificate to a store in the mall.

"Great. I need picture frames." Chandler smiled.

"Are you Chandler?" Tony's wife came up to him.

"Yeah." He smiled at her. "You're Tony's wife, right?"

"Yes. I'm Beth." She smiled at him. "Tony talks so highly about you. Going to school and working to support your daughter."

"Thank you."

"I got you something." She handed him an envelope.

"You didn't have to." He opened the envelope and saw a gift certificate to a children's store and another one to a restaurant. "Thank you."

"No problem." She walked away as him and his friends took over two lanes.

"That was really nice of her." Ross told him.

"Chandler," Carol handed Sophie over to him. "She needs to be changed."

"I'm not even sure if the guy's restroom has a changing table."

"There's a room in the back with benches where you can change her."

"Ok." He picked up the diaper bag and went to the back room and lay her down on the floor to change her diaper and realized that she had soaked through her outfit. "Good thing I brought your pajamas with me."

He finished getting her into a clean diaper and got her into the footie pajamas and took her back out to everyone. They spent the next two hours bowling and playing the arcade games that were there. Sophie started getting cranky and fell asleep against Chandler as they were all packing up all their things to go back home.

"This was fun," Phoebe told them as they all made their way out to the parking lot. "We need to get together on Christmas."

Chandler and Nora walked back into his apartment on Christmas Eve night after they took Sophie to the Winter Wonderland exhibit at the rec center in town, then drove through the next town over to see the lights. Sophie was clutching the stuffed Rudolph to her that Chandler had gotten her as he got her ready for bed and read her a story. She fell right to sleep as he laid her in the crib and turned on her night light and left her room.

Chandler went into his bedroom and got out all the presents he had gotten for Sophie and took them out to start wrapping them and to put together the wooden rocking horse he had gotten for her. Chandler slept on the couch that night while he gave up his bed to his mom because she wanted to be there as soon as Sophie woke up in the morning.

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Chandler slowly resurfaced as he felt shaking. He turned over and focused on Sophie trying to climb onto her rocking horse.

"She's up early," he glanced at the clock on the wall.

"Maybe she knows what today is." Nora told him.

Chandler got off the couch and got down Sophie's stocking and held her on his lap as he got everything out for her. There was a knock on the door and they both looked at each other.

"I really hope that's not him," Chandler said knowing Nora would know that he was talking about his dad. "I don't want anything to ruin this day."

"It's not your father," Nora came back with Phoebe and Joey.

"You guys came." Chandler smiled at them.

"Nice hats," Joey smiled at the Santa hats that both Chandler and Sophie were wearing.

"My mom's idea." Chandler told them as he helped Sophie open her presents. "You guys didn't have to bring her anything."

"It's her first Christmas." Phoebe told him. "She deserves to be spoiled."

"Thank you." Chandler helped Sophie rip the wrapping paper off. "I didn't get you guys anything, though. I spent all my extra money on Sophie."

"No problem," Joey told him. "I had some help from my mom picking it out."

"She loves them." Chandler smiled as Sophie started hitting two of the blocks together and laughed at the noise it was making.

"This is for you, honey." Nora handed Chandler a small gift wrapped box.

"Thanks." Chandler opened it and found a new silver watch. "This is great. I have something for you, too."

Chandler got a flat present from under the tree and handed it to her. She opened it and saw a photo album of Chandler and Sophie since he started college.

"I didn't take all of those," he told her. "Monica and Carol took some. And so did Phoebe. I just had to remember what order to put them in."

"This is great, honey. I love it."

The rest of the day seemed to go by too fast for Chandler. He wanted it to last forever for Sophie. Monica, Ross, and Carol stopped by in the late afternoon after their dinner had been delivered and they were starting to set everything out on the counter. Rachel had wanted to come, but her family went out of town. But Monica brought her gift for Sophie.

"She is definitely spoiled," Chandler said out loud as he lay Sophie down in the crib that night after she passed out on the floor trying to play with all her toys at once. "But at least it was good for her. And no drama."

He closed her door and went to go help everyone clean up everything.

AN: So there's another chapter for you guys. Hope you all like it. Please R&R.