Christmas From the Heart

I had decided way back in October or November that we were going to take it easy at Christmas.  We were not going to host anything or make any big plans.  I felt that we should spend time together and focus on each other since it was my daughter's last Christmas before she goes away to college.

I am so glad I had those plans... who knew at that point that I would break my foot and end up forced into doing that whether I had wanted to or not.

It was the most relaxing holiday I have ever had.  I also felt like my family and I completely reconnected.  We talked, laughed, played games, watched movies, had Studio C marathons, baked, ate, played with the dogs, got caught up with each of my husband's 6 siblings by Skyping with each of them.  It was wonderful!

Every year with my husband's siblings, we have taken turns doing the 12 Days of Christmas with each other.  It started when one sibling was going through a tremendous challenge.   Then the next year another sibling did, so we decided to carry the tradition on for them.  There were some hardships we had faced earlier this year, so to our surprise and delight, the siblings got together and did it for us.  They did it a little different this year and did something for us each week.  They made the focus more about fun than store bought gifts, though there were a few of those, too.

Here is what they did (keep in mind several of them are extremely musical):
Skyped a family violin performance.
Skyped a family sing-along.
Sent links to several songs they had written and conducted
Sent a gift card to Culver's
Sent a huge picture colored by preschoolers to our family
Sent a dog ornament and yummy treats and cute winter hats
Sent hand-written messages from each child in the family
Sent Star Wars Yoda figurine along with Star Wars snowflake directions
Sent a memory book of past visits with their family
Sent a cool that-was-then-this-is-now ornament of my girls with this wonderful note:

1996

You guys spent Christmas at Grandma and Grandpa's house.  Your oldest was just a baby, so she obviously had no clue about Christmas.  Instead, I was surprised that it was Dana who was too excited to sleep that night. We stayed up past midnight finishing last minute details.  We especially had fun making a special gift for Grandma and Grandpa--a padded photo album for the pictures of their children growing up.  It was my first glimpse of the fun of joy and anticipation of giving an exciting gift to someone else. 

2001

Grandma, Grandpa and I traveled to Minnesota to spend a week with your family for Christmas.  It was so fun to be with little kids for the holiday.  Your oldest was 5 and youngest was 2-1/2.  Everything about the season was thrilling for them.  I remember one of our activities was to see the Marshall Fields display and the light parade.  All day we talked about our plans to go downtown that evening.  When we finally arrived and found a place to park, the youngest looked at the stark, cold walls of the parking garage and shouted in disappointment, "This is downtown?!” 

Despite her initial impression, the display inside the store was fascinating.  The theme was "The Night Before Christmas," and even as an adult I marveled at the creativity, and especially enjoyed viewing it through the eyes of little kids.

2002

Everyone except J's family (and M on his mission) was at Grandma and Grandpa's house this year.  It was quite a crowd to pack into the living room for Christmas Eve, including Grandma and Grandpa D, Grandma H and Aunt E.  Somehow we found a part for the Nativity play for everyone (with lots of little bleating sheep). 

After things had settled down that night, we all set out our shoes for Santa.  With so many of us, the row filled the fireplace.  Your kids and PW were still awake, so I snagged a photo of them on the couch.  I love the look of anticipation in their eyes.  

Besides gifts from Santa, your kids had an extra surprise on the tree:  beautiful pink matching dresses which Dana had somehow managed to find time to make and keep secret. I remember your oldest's sincere expression of gratitude as she spontaneously threw a hug around her mom.  It seemed these gifts of the heart trumped even Santa's offering.

I hope this coming Christmas season is also filled with fun family memories and you continue to feel the magic of Christmas.

Love,

Aunt D

What beautiful meaningful gifts to give.  I loved the special memories that Aunt D shared, as I never knew our family was having an impact on someone else so much.  The whole experience made me want to love others more and make them feel special as well.  I felt incredibly grateful this Christmas to feel more connected to my immediate family, but also to our siblings who are all spread out.  I also felt grateful for the gifts we gave each other, which to us, are a reminder of the greatest gift that Heavenly Father gave us- the gift of the baby Jesus!

I didn't even take very many pictures because I was more in the moment and relaxed than usual.  But here are a few.

My youngest as the official photographer at the Ward Christmas Party for kids greeting Santa.

 My husband as the "official" emcee.

 Christmas morning.

Christmas morning with her new PJ's.  I think she is deliriously happy with all of her gifts???

 Such fun... we did have the missionaries over so they could call home.  We gave them stockings for fun.

 Baking rolls for Christmas dinner- ham, jello, and scalloped potatoes.

 My husband's favorite gift from our youngest.

 My favorite gift (I have to admit I picked these out myself- haha).  Am I the only person that does stuff like that?  It matched this year's dance theme I couldn't resist.

 Play-time!

New Year's Eve.  (My youngest wouldn't let me take a picture).  They both went to the Church Dance and rang in the new year then breakfast at a friend's house at 1 am.  It was such a cold winter's night (around 20 below zero if I remember correctly), I couldn't sleep until everyone was home safely, so I watched Studio C all night!