Admittedly, I let the holiday stress take over a little too much this year, but not enough to stop me from soaking in many sweet moments. For me, some of the highlights of this Christmas season were:
*Seeing Elijah at his holiday concert at school. Let’s just say he was not reserved! His voice was definitely heard by all–he got really into singing the songs and put a lot of enthusiasm in them! He took a break from singing, and said hello to his groupies in the audience :). It was really funny/adorable/memorable to see him be a little star in his show.
*Laina wrapping up gifts (a couple things from our house), and giving them to Sam and I on Christmas Eve. She was really worried that we wouldn’t have a gift to open that night, so she decided to make sure we’d be covered. A letter to each of us in an envelope with a stamp was included with the gift. This gesture really touched me.
*Listening to Austin talking about all things Christmas. The way he says “HO HO man” is hysterical. Elf, reindeer, no-man, Cismiss lights, tee were some other ones we heard many times.
*Riding around on Christmas Eve in our pjs looking at lights.
*Going to Zoolights-another tradition!
*Waking up Christmas morning in our home and watching the kids discover all that Santa had left. Laina was sweet about handing out the gifts to the boys.
*Enjoying our traditional strata and hidden apple rolls for brunch.
*Receiving handmade gifts from Charlie.
*Getting to see all of our parents and grandparents!
*Spending the day in Richmond with family. Laina was asked to be a flower girl in Patrick and Sarah’s wedding, and she’s still beside herself! She keeps reminding me of the wedding date :).
*Making sugar cookies with the kids.
*Watching the excitement Laina had in picking out and delivering gifts to her teachers.
So much to be grateful for. As Laina says, “I love my family more than anything.”
