"As we struggle with shopping lists and invitations, compounded by December’s bad weather, it is good to be reminded that there are people in our lives who are worth this aggravation, and people to whom we are worth the same."
– Donald E. Westlake
Before we could start the Christmas festivities, there were several things we needed to do. The first was to make gingerbread houses. Technically, it was a gingerbread train, house, and tree. Isla needed a little help with the tree, which turned out to be the most complicated of the three, but the other kids were able to manage theirs fairly well. It became a constant challenge to keep them from eating them afterwards.
The second thing we needed to do was go to Six Flags for Holiday in the Park. The weather was nice, and the kids had fun sledding, going on rides, and seeing at all the lights.
The last things we had to do was wrap the presents and bake cookies for Santa. Even the Elf on the Shelf got involved in the fun when the kids woke up to find her ready to start the baking process. She got her own cookie on Christmas Eve.
After all the work, Christmas Eve finally arrived. The kids got dressed up, then we took some pictures and headed to church and the annual dinner at Joe T. Garcia’s. After we got back home, the kids got to put on their Christmas pajamas, put out cookies and milk for Santa, and then tried to get to sleep so Santa could deliver presents. “Tried” being the key word thanks to some large and sugar filled cookies provided to the kids by Papa after dinner.
Christmas finally arrived. As kids are required to do, they ran down stairs and started digging into presents before we could even get the camera ready. We were able to restore a semblance of order and the kids settled into the first of three Christmas activities. Spoiled much?
The next stop on the Christmas tour was at Nina and Papa’s, where the kids got to open yet more presents and play with their cousins. They also got to video chat with their Georgia cousins, which they thought was fun.
The final stop on the tour was at Grandma and Grampa’s house for more presents and dinner. I would have thought the kids would have been worn out by this point, but they must have had energy reserved because they were just as crazy here as the other two places.
Another Christmas is in the books, filled with food, toys, candy, games, and excitement. Thanks everyone for making this another special Christmas!
Merry Christmas!