Merry Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas.  Leah was completely enchanted by the idea of Santa Claus coming to our home, and Adam was typical Adam- just happy to be.  We spent Christmas Eve shopping, wrapping, and decorating Christmas cookies.  We had a great nativity with lots of extra shepards and wise men and for some reason I didn't get a single picture of any of it.  Leah was the angel and Adam was in charge of lighting (read: standing on a chair and flicking the lights on and off at his discretion).  Jason was Joseph, Michelle was Mary, and I narrated and played the piano. 

It warmed my heart to hear Leah's prayer that night- "Thank you that it's Jesus' birthday."  The cookies were laid out, the reindeer food spread, and the stockings hung.  Then it was off to bed for the kids, off to work for the adults.

When Leah woke up in the morning around 8:00, she laid in her temporary bed in our room and sang, "I love thee Lord Jesus"over and over again.  Eventually she climbed into our bed and we snuggled together for another 45 minutes before she finally mentioned Christmas.  "I wonder if Santa Claus came," she mused.  "I think I'm ready to line up on the stairs and find out."  It wasn't quite the early morning excitement or greed I had anticipated (thankfully) but we roused the aunties and lined up on the stairs.

Adam was not yet fully awake.

But as soon as he saw his new train set from Santa, he was happy as could be. 

Leah was thrilled to get a scooter ("My best present" she has told my many times since) and eventually Jason and I got around to opening presents for ourselves, too.  The meaning of Christmas has shifted so much as we have become parents- the getting is great, but it is the giving and the sparkle in our kids eyes that bring the real magic of the holiday.

It was a wonderful Christmas.  Being in our home has been great, and having family here to share the holidays with has been so very nice.  I also got to spend a fair bit of time on the phone with my family, and we even got to visit with my brother in Afghanistan. 

Had we sent out a Christmas card, it would have looked like the picture at the top of this post.  And it would have said how thankful we are for our blessings, our health and our family and friends.  This has been a wonderful year, and we are excited to take on all the adventures that 2011 will bring!