Wii've Got Christmas Secrets

Christmas was so exciting around my house! Santa brought my children a lot of fun toys, but Mommy got to be the real hero by giving them the things they wanted most! The morning began a little rough for Sariah. She got up and looked at all the fun new Wii games Santa left for them and said, "This is mostly for dad!"

Of course, Steve called her on that by saying, "You play it more than I do!"

Her response, "Well, technically!"

I think that Sariah was just disappointed that she did not see any Pixos or a Cabbage Patch doll. And then she had to wait until after breakfast to see what else she received. We have a family tradition (10 years running) where we invite Grandparents, Great-grandparent, and some aunts and uncles to join us for breakfast and then watch the children open their gifts. The girls are welcome to play with everything Santa left, but they have to wait for the rest.

But at least Em wasn't disappointed. We had a Santa emergency on Christmas eve. For the first time, we realized that Em really really wanted Twister! I had purchased Twister Hopscotch, but was having a hard time getting her two very similar gifts, so I decided that she would not get Twister. Santa agreed with me! Then Emy told Grandma Betty that she knew Santa would bring her Twister! She knew! Ummm..... So at 12:30 Christmas Eve, we were trying to contact Santa to let him know. We checked the only open store (Did you know Walgreens was open all Christmas Eve and Christmas Day?) But he didn't have one there. Luckily, a little elf was up late too and came to our rescue with a Hannah Montana Twister game that Santa left for her.

There was a terrible snowstorm out by us on Christmas Day. It was very difficult to see and many of our neighbors had lost power. Grandma B was worried so she and Kristi did not try to come out. We were lucky, we had power until we sat down for breakfast. And then we lost it for awhile, but it didn't bother us since the food was prepared.

After breakfast came the most exciting part! PRESENTS!!!!!!

This is were I made the biggest mistake of the morning! Most of Gracie's presents centered around a dollhouse. So, I thought she should open that first. She did! And of course she loved it! She should, she asked me to show her the picture on the computer every day of December. Well, apparently Gracie thought that you only got to keep the last present you open, so that was basically the last one she wanted to open. Luckily, Grandpa C was able to convince her to open more gifts by telling her that he thought he saw another baby in them. It worked for all the toys, but sisters ended up opening the clothes. Here she is with one of her favorite gifts:

She played with this all morning! And when Steve said that he was going to take a nap she yelled, "No! Play dollhouse!" Finally, he was able to convince her to take a nap too! But she insisted on sleeping with the mommy, daddy, both babies, sister, grandma and the car! She loved it. She was so cute. Everyone got a kick out of her putting the mommy and the babies in the van and saying, "They go bye-bye. Shopping!" Daddy would get in the van to go to work, but mommy only went shopping. She was also really excited about the potty! Every doll got a turn while she would dance for them.

No other present was a exciting as the Dollhouse! Until we went to Grandma D's! Grandma was smarter than me and had Gracie open her clothes first. And then she got the exciting present. Grandma had made her a carrier, a blanket and clothes for the new baby she gave her! Grace loved it! Really loved it. After that she would not open her present from her cousin she just wanted to play with her baby. Grandma also gave her a big diaper bag full of things to play with her baby! And guess what! There was a potty in that too! She was so excited to have her baby go potty. And now I am hoping that her toys will teach her how to go potty! Here she is with her other favorite gift:

For all of you who have been worrying about poor Sariah who got no Pixos and no Cabbage Patch! Don't worry, I'll tell you what I told her... "You haven't opened all your presents yet" She was so excited when she opened her Pixos from Steve and I:

But she was still a little sad because she did not get a Cabbage Patch. She didn't think she would get one now because Grandma D said that she only got the kids little presents this year! Considering that Sariah tends to get quite mopey when she doesn't get what she wants, I was impressed that she did not whine about her lack of Cabbage Patch (well at least not much). But I wasn't worried anyway. I knew Grandma and Grandpa would save the day:

I think this was Sariah's favorite gift of the year. She hasn't been seen without it except when we went to church today. Kudos to Grandpa who picked it out for her!

Now for Nicole. She was quite the sneaky girl this year. She would spend hours "rearranging" the presents under the tree. Sometimes, there would be little holes in the wrapping paper. And if you "rearranged" the presents just right, those holes would get bigger. Sometimes, completely unaware, Nicole would catch a glimpse of what was inside all the presents with her name on them! This was so not her fault she would tell me. But still I knew she would have very little in the way of surprises on Christmas morning. So, I decided that her only surprise would have to be her sister gift. She had jokingly told Grandma D that she wanted diapers for Christmas this year. So, I wrapped her gift from Grace in a empty diaper box. But to my surprise, when Nicole opened the diapers, she was genuinely happy! She didn't even realize it was a trick. Steve had to tell her that there really weren't any diapers in the box! What a silly girl!!

And here she is with the gift she has been peaking on all month:

Emily had a great Christmas thanks to Santa's special elf! When she woke up and saw that Hannah Montana Twister was amongst the Christmas gifts from Santa she was so happy! I am really glad that I tried to contact Santa on Christmas Eve. I don't think I could have stood to have her sad on what might end up being her last year of belief. She ended up returning the Hannah Montana one and got regular Twister, but she was okay with that and was not disappointed Christmas morning. Her favorite gifts ended up being her new Bratz dolls:

And Disney Sing It! for the Wii. (Umm, yeah that was one of the games Santa left that was mostly for Dad. He is in love with all those teeny-bopper singers and was ever so thrilled to have that game).

Well, just so you know, all those Wii games that Santa left for Dad were enjoyed very much by the girls:

And Steve ended up feeling like he needed his own Wii game, so thanks to my parents (for the money) and his brother (for calling to tell Steve what a great deal he found on Guitar Hero World Tour), Steve is now able to start his own band! --- Check this out if you don't know what I mean by that: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ7iaYKUrBM Really, I think all men are just little boys in older bodies especially at Christmas.

Of course, I can't forget to thank all of our wonderful helpers. Grandpa C for sharing his fantastic carpentry skills building Gracie's Dollhouse:

And Uncle Dwaine who some how got assigned to be Gracie's personal servant in charge of removing all her toys from the boxes:

Psst... all these people think we invited them to Christmas breakfast because we love them and enjoy their company. And while we do love them and enjoy there company, we do have an ulterior motive. With them there, we are not bombarded by 4 little girls begging us to help get toys out of boxes. Shhh.... don't tell!

I hope that all of you also had a very merry Christmas too!

Christmas Secrets

I can hardly believe that Christmas is almost here! It feels like the entire month of December just sprinted by! And that is no easy task considering my kids have been off-track for most of it.

I have been pondering something for the entirety of this month and I really want to share it with all of you.

Two years ago we enjoyed our last Christmas with Steve's Dad. Traditionally, he would read all of us the Christmas story from the Bible. This year, when he had finished reading, he asked us all to stay and listen while he shared a few thought with us. He began by discussing a bit of his childhood. He lived on a farm in Idaho and had many tasks each day to help run the farm. But one of his favorites was securing the barn for the night. Each night he would head to the barn to make sure all the animals were safe and warm. He took a few minutes to share with us what the atmosphere was like in the barn at night. He said that it was warm, quite and had a sense of reverence about it. He would spend a little time with the animals feeling the peace of the evening.

After sharing this bit of his history with us, he began to make a comparison. He painted for us a picture in Bethlehem. In one scene there was an Inn. Packed with people. Full to capacity. It was loud and dirty from the weary travelers. There was most likely a lot of drinking, rebel rousing, and perhaps a few inappropriate activities. The fact that every Inn in the city was full indicated that there would be no privacy available to anyone.

In the next scene, there was a stable much like the barn of his childhood. The stable would be warm from the presence of the animals. It would be quiet as the animals settled for the night. There would be no drinking, rebel rousing or other activities. Amidst the animals there would be a sense of peace similar to what my father-in-law felt each night of his childhood. There would be no other people which would provide a great deal of intimacy in the stable as the babe was born. But most importantly, there would be a quiet sense of reverence. An environment meant to herald a King into the world.

We often look at the stable as the last resort. "lowly". A lucky break so the babe was not born on the streets of Bethlehem. A "lowly" stable. This word makes it feel almost sad, miserable. We focus on the most used definition of the word: of low position, manner or degree. This definition creates a feeling that the stable was unimportant; insignificant. But the first definition of this word (according to Websters) is humble or meek in manner. A humble stable... a stable prepared for a newborn babe.

As my father-in-law spoke to us (and many times after when I thought of this story) I realized that the when "there was no room for them in the inn" (Luke 2:7); they were receiving a blessing not another trial. Mary and Joseph were granted a private, reverent location for the birth of the Son of God.

We trust our mortal and limited vision too much. He who loves us. He who sees the beginning from the end is always there to bless us. Sometimes those blessing are so obvious that there is no denying His hand. But sometimes our blessing come in the form of a stable. With a greater knowledge or sometimes just a bit of time we can see our own "stables" for what they are... tender mercies sent from the Lord to provide us exactly what we need. At the exact time that we need it. In the exact manner needed (even if that varies from the manner we desire).

At this time as we celebrate the birth of our Savior, I hope each of you will take some time to look objectively at your own "stables". And search with a greater understanding to find the blessing hidden in them. I have been trying to do this throughout December and here is what I have found: Because of my depression I often feel sad and unstable. But, because of my depression, I have knit hearts with some of my best friends. Depression and the struggle that comes with it gives me a great amount of empathy and understanding. And it is this, this awful trial, that has provided me with some of my most treasured friendships. Though I wish to be through with these feelings, I certainly don't want to give up the blessing from it... friends.

A Secret Letter to My Mom

Dear Mom,

As a child I thought that I had a special talent for dropping clues. I thought that if I hinted enough for sure you would know how I was feeling or what I wanted. I was positive that all my clues where sooooooo obvious. After all, I knew exactly how I was feeling and I thought up the clues. Of course, anyone would be able to figure them out. And if they didn't, I could always pout and mope around the house so that everyone would try a little harder to read my mind.

I am so sorry! As a mother, I know realize that the title "mom" does not include the ability to read minds. I am sorry that I was so annoying waiting for people to guess what I wanted. I am sorry that I would pout so often and then deny that I was doing it. And I am so sorry that I am now getting exactly what I deserve. Yes, mom, your wishes have come true.... I now have a child just like me! And (surprise surprise) I can't read her mind! But I'm positive that she expects me too. Man, that is so annoying!

Love,
Kelli

I Know You Want To....

I know you are all dying to see my recent family photos.... Okay, so maybe you aren't, but I am going to post them anyway!

The Secrets to an Easy Christmas Card

So, I have never been very good at sending Christmas cards. In fact, I have never actually done it. I have bought Christmas Cards, but I have never sent them. Crazy, I know! So this year, to alleviate my guilt (and because I have such fun family pictures), I am going to actually send out Christmas cards!

And here it is......

With two weeks 'til Christmas I hope all over you are beginning to feel the spirit and excitement of the season!