It's Christmas Eve, already! Time goes so fast as an adult. As a kid I remember the day being so long and mom and dad telling my sister and I "no, it's not time to open the presents yet," over and over again. I also remember not being able to sleep and then getting up really early on Christmas morning to see what Santa brought us. But the truth is, I don't remember much of the gifts that were given to me, except my cool Walkman and Ghetto Blaster! I remember all the traditional foods we ate such as oysters...yuck, I'll take ham, the fresh deer jerky my grandmother made, and a jello dessert with pineapple and tapioca pudding that my grandmother made. I also remember playing with my sister and cousins for hours on end, playing out in the snow and having fun sleepovers. Those are a few of the things I remember and I have realized, as an adult and parent, Christmas is not about gifts and new toys and clothes, it's about Jesus and being surrounded by the people you love; your parents, grandparents, cousins and friends. I want to teach our boys that toys and clothes are material things to enjoy at that moment but the love of a family is forever. I'm sure everyone has Christmas memories similar to these, but now I'm excited that my son is starting to feel the same excitement that I had as a kid. This was the first year that Connor could not sleep and next year he will probably be asking me, "is it time to open the presents yet?"...over and over again!
This year we decided to stay home and host Christmas at our house. Allen and I planned a fun day packed with a nice ham dinner, games, movies, cookie decorating, a nature walk, and a crowd pleasing puzzle! We had so much planned we didn't even get time for the nature walk. And, you'll be happy to know that Grandma is a champion at Wheel of Fortune, even with having some "controller" problems ;-). She won all kinds of money, trips and even a car! We also took some family photos and left a gum drop trail for Santa's reindeer to snack on. They need dessert too, you know! Before the kids' bed time, we set out the milk and cookies for Santa then Grandma read The Night Before Christmas to the boys. Off to bed the boys went then us adults played more games!
Our dinner table all set
Decorating cookies for Santa and putting together the puzzle
Typical kid...licking all the frosting!
Family photo
Grandpa with the boys
Grandma with the boys
My silly boys
All the stockings hung with care
The gum drop trail
Checking the trail...
...and making sure it's just right!
Setting out the milk and cookies
Say "cheese!"
Grandma reading The Night Before Christmas
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