Christmas '09

Christmas 2009 has come and gone.  Wow. The last few months have been a complete whirlwind of activity and I wasn't feeling 100% prepared this year, but then again I'm usually not 100% prepared for anything!

Christmas Eve was the usual flurry of appetizers, wine, (having Margie, Tim, Sarah and Brian over to help with some) wrapping, reindeer food, cookies for Santa, more wine...

I love after the mess is cleaned up, kids are long asleep (or faking it well) and I get a few minutes of quiet time before heading to bed for a few short hours of sleep.  The time to reflect, to be excited for my kids, to remember that Christ is the reason for the season and to appreciate the many blessings that we have as a family.

The kids all slept in until almost 8 a.m. They were patient enough to wait for us to make coffee before they started digging into the presents.

 

Silas was excited about his Cars racetrack

 

Ella got earrings from Daddy and loved her Nintendo DS the best.

 

Mason had hoped and hoped that he'd get an iPod Touch,

which he did, but we wrapped it in a Pokemon video case.

We spent the afternoon at Mom and Dad's with all the family - whew, there are a lot of us! At the end of the evening, it's about all we can do to get the kids in pj's, teeth brushed, and keep our eyes open for a book or two.  We tend to perk up long enough for a glass of wine before crawling into bed ourselves.  

(I've been liking quotes a lot lately...)

"Christmas is not a time or a season but a state of mind. To cherish peace and good will, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas. If we think on these things, there will be born in us a Savior and over us will shine a star sending its gleam of hope to the world."
~ Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933)

Presidential message (December 25, 1927).