This Christmas felt like a magical dream; a soft, powdery Utah snow fell on Christmas Eve, we had our first Christmas snuggled in our cozy home, and we were surrounded by loved ones and family.
Tad and Lisa were able to approach their Christmas preparations with muscles kneaded to supple, stress-free perfection after their anniversary celebration of a couple's massage. The Japanese spa was a perfect zen experience involving a steam room, a warming room, scented lotions, and some
serious pampering. So Santa was especially jolly this year.Of course the kids had weeks of Christmas preparation that we won't recount in too much detail. Suffice it to say that they made the cutest Family Home Evening Joseph and Mary (with Crosby playing a restless sheep/donkey) we've ever seen and they positively stuffed themselves with various treats dropped off by neighbors and loved ones.
The true festivities kicked off on Christmas Eve at Grandma May's house with a wonderful dinner and our traditional celebration. We read the special Christmas book that Tad and his siblings grew up reading each year, sang some Christmas carols, and opened one present each. Tad even got the fire going to bring the special warmth we so enjoyed.
Magically, Emerson and Stella somehow even avoided the usual Christmas morning overload grumpies. They both slept really late, waking so h
ungry that they actually enjoyed a big breakfast before tearing into the gifts. Emerson's first priority was opening Crosby's gifts. Over the weeks, Emerson had been closely monitoring the status of each family member's stocking and immediately noticed a giant bone Santa had brought in Crosby's. Grandma May joined us for the gluttonous gift-opening, a truly ridiculous bestowal of presents on two kids we can't help but spoil. Then we leisurely headed over to Grandma and Grandpa Baker's house for a delicious feast, some excellent visiting with family, and even more gift opening. In the final analysis, the toy tally was too great to recount in total, so we'll just mention a couple of highlights. Stella received the first "girl" toys in our house -- three baby dolls, a purse, and a grocery cart with groceries. Emerson raked in a lot of loot -- a roaring/walking dinosaur, two remote-controlled tarantulas, and a giant train set.We thoroughly enjoyed all of th
e updates we received from our friends and loved ones over the holidays. So many of you are doing such amazing things and raising such beautiful families. We feel so blessed to know you and hope you have enjoyed the spirit of the Lord this season as we have.
2 comments:
I love your kids, as if they were my own. They are so dang cute! Did Stella leave a blue blanket here when you came last weekend? Let me know and I'll come drop it off, or keep it and give you another excuse to come up and have dinner with us again. :)
Jamie, can you tell how seldom I check on my blog? Yes, she did leave here blue blankie and yes we need to hang out!
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