Christmas at Our House

We were all counting down the days, but nobody in our house was as excited for Christmas to come as Nathan was. He wore his Santa stuff, shoved toys in bags, and wandered around the house yelling "Ho, Ho, Ho! Merry Christmas!" It was so cute!

Well, the blessed day finally came and after eating our traditional pizza, we opened up our annual Christmas Eve jammies! Nothing feels better on the body that brand new fuzzy fleece...

We hopped in the car and went for a drive to see the lights. It was so late that we had to wake Nathan up when we got there so he wouldn't miss them. Poor tired little thing. After we got home and had some special gourmet hot chocolate and egg nog, put out snacks for Santa and the reindeer, and checked the internet to see where Santa was, we tucked the kids all in their beds. They all sleep together, just like I used to with my brothers and sisters when we were young. I have such good memories of those times. Well, just like we used to, the kids had a hard time settling down. I heard one of the boys tell the girls to hurry and go to sleep so Santa would come faster. It was cute. Steve and I went downstairs to wrap up some more presents and do the grown-up thing and went to bed when all was quiet and perfect for Santa's arrival.

The next morning came really early... I think it was 5:30 this year. Thanks to the big kids, the little ones never sleep in too late! Santa was so good to us this year, bringing very special presents for each one of the kids. He really outdid himself this time!

New bedspreads and things to redecorate a dark
basement bedroom

Castle blocks for building and playing with
medieval treasures

A work bench to build with dad
...and wood from Santa's own workshop!

A genuine pirate treasure chest,
complete with pirate treasure and clothes

We had so much fun opening presents, watching each person open one at a time. It made it last a lot longer, and it was fun to enjoy each moment together.

I got some new clothes and shoes, a wii workout game, jewelry, and some other great presents. My special present this year was from Rachel. She learned a song by Taylor Swift called "The Best Day", and sang it for me while she played it on her guitar. (You can listen to Taylor's version on my music player.) She had typed up the last refrain and framed it for me to keep. It made me cry. The best presents always do! She cried too. It was so sweet, straight from her heart to mine, and such a special mom and daughter moment.

After all the presents were unwrapped, closely examined, separated from the trash and wrappings, and played with for a while, we had breakfast...our traditional Ham and Cheese Souffle. The rest of the morning (it was only 8:00 when breakfast was over) was spent re-examining, re-separating, and playing with our new toys. We got dressed and spent a wonderful afternoon and had dinner at my mom and dad's. It was such a nice day!

When it was all over and the kids were tucked in later that night, Steve and I (like every year) sat and cuddled on the couch as we marveled at the blessings we have. It was a wonderful day, and though we also got some very fun and special presents, the greatest presents we've ever received are the incredible family we shared so much joy with that day, and the knowledge of the birth of our Savior and the incredible love He has for each of us. Christmas is truly the most wonderful time of the year!!