Christmas Day

12/25/2022

I always love the anticipation of Christmas morning and seeing the excitement from all of my kids as they sit at the top of the stairs waiting to run down and see what Santa brought them. Although we only have one little kid in the house, it is still so much fun as the older kids still get excited. This year none of the older kids had any idea what they were getting which made their excitement more intense than usual. All Madeline wanted was a robot dog and Santa delivered big time. Her face as she turned the corner from the stairs was priceless. The older kids were so excited by their big gifts too. Andrew got a subscription to Hello Fresh, Emma got air pods and a new Garmin running watch that is similar to an apple watch but does so much more, and Abby got an epic vocal recording system. Everyone was thrilled. This year I found the little pickle, so I got to be the first one to open up a present. Even though we had 10:30am church, we ripped through the present opening so fast. The kids all got things they needed and also wanted all in one. Madeline got a new matching lunchbox, backpack and water bottle, books, a princess Lego set from Mike which she loved, a Toniebox and Disney princess characters to go with it, an art easel with paint markers and a new apron, a set of instruments, and some new clothes. Abby got new shoes, new clothes, new paints, an everywhere belt bag from Lululemon which she loved and a new necklace from Albion. Emma got new shoes, new clothes, a GHD curling iron, and a necklace from Albion that she kept stealing from me. Andrew got new lunch boxes for school, new clothes from Kuhl and Vuori that he would never buy for himself, new skis, and his mission scrapbook that I finished and had printed for him. Mike and I bought new clothes for each other, mostly from Vuori, Kuhl and Lululemon which are our favorite stores. Mike also got a new work messenger bag and also his traditional Lego set. This year I decided on the Child from the Mandalorian series. He loved it. Of all the presents we received, the best was getting on the phone with Peter that afternoon and hearing his cheerful voice. It really put things in perspective hearing his positivity knowing that things weren’t much better than the day before but seeing how a good night’s rest can change one’s mood and outlook on things. I was immediately humbled and blessed to be able to have the most wonderful conversation with Peter. We sure did miss having him in person on Christmas but video chatting with him was pretty great. Family really is the best gift anyone can have on Christmas morning. I hope that our family never forgets that.