ITS THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR....

What a wonderful Christmas holiday our family enjoyed together.  We truly were blessed to be able to relax together as a family in a warm home with plenty...I am indeed grateful. 

As do most families, we have many traditions that we carry out for the holiday season. We started our Christmas Eve at the library.  The kids wanted new books to enjoy over the long break.  Later on we played some "Christmas Bingo".

When daddy got home we made a craft.  We all love hot chocolate so much that I bought some plain white mugs for the kids to decorate - so they can have their OWN mug.  They loved it and were diligent in planning out their designs. The end results were cute and creative. 

 

 

Unfortunately the quality of the mug wasn't so good....the film that was applied to the mug to make it possible for us to color on washed off in the dishwasher...but we have some nice WHITE MUGS... :)

Next we enjoyed our Christmas dinner.  I'm not much of a cook, but for the holiday I like to put on a great meal for the family.  We had Prime Rib, mashed potatos and gravy, cheesy beans, stuffing, pretzel salad, rolls and Lemon Meringue pie.  And I have to boast and say it was ALL FROM SCRATCH!!

Enjoying our Mormon bubbly(sparkling grape juice)

Hours of preparation, minutes to eat...and then comes cleanup.

We then read the account of Christ's birth from Luke out of the Bible and a special story that Brent's mother read to them all growing up..."When He Comes Again".

 

After that we open one gift...always pajamas; changed, check Norad tracking to see where Santa is, and then feed the reindeer.

I think at that point he was in China or something....

We fed the deer some glittery oats...

Before bed we watch a new Christmas movie. This year we watched ELF and it was HILARIOUS! Anyone that has seen it...IT's A CLASSIC, aint it!

By this time the kids were ready for bed; tired, yet anxious.  But fall right to sleep cuz they know Santa is coming.
And Santa came....

And he brought them exactly what they asked for...and a few other things.

But before we could open the door and rush the living room, it's tradition to each pick a Christmas Song to sing and then have family prayer.

And the kids loved every minute of the day.

My own REX

My own Wolverine

I was happy that Santa didn't confuse the "STUFFED" puppy in a bag for a real one.

I love Christmas for a lot of reasons.  Of course it always renews my testimony of our Savior; I think about Him probably a lot more in depth than I do regularly. But I'd like to think that the Savior is a constant in my life and doesn't require a special holiday to force me to think of Him.  I love my Savior and live my life for Him.  I may not be perfect.  But I AM trying to be what I can be so that I can be with Brent, Madelyn, Marcus, and Brian FOREVER.

I love the Holiday's because of the kids.  I love to see their happy faces, their surprise, anxiety for what is to come.  I love to watch them play, to have fun. I love to relax and not worry about normal daily stresses; the hussle and bussle of life.  I love my family. And every year since Brent and I have been married we've gotten an extended amount of time together as a family - it's something we've been blessed with with his career. So because of that, I love Christmas.

I love Christmas because it brings out selflessness.  People genuinely like to give. It's a great day when we're thinking about someone else GREATER than we are thinking about ourselves. Every year, every day, I hope that I can come closer to mastering this.

Happy Holiday's everyone! We love you!