How We Spent Christmas

For the third year in a row we celebrated Christmas with just the four of us.

And. I. Love. It.

Here we are all dolled up ready for the candlelight Christmas Eve service...

As you can see we entered into the service with all solemnity and prayerfulness...

Surely you expected nothing less?

Christmas morning the girls slept until 7:30! I actually woke them up when I went to the garage to get out a roast and then let the dog out!

Did you know that my big brother woke me up every single Christmas morning no later than 4am to snoop in our stockings? He always insisted all the gifts had to go back in exactly how they came out. I never could understand that rule, but I knew David to be older and sneakier so I never questioned. I asked him once why he always woke me up to come peak with him. It turns out he figured he wouldn't be in trouble if his adorable baby sister was with him.

Okay. He didn't call me adorable. I added that part in. But he was totally counting on the baby of the family to keep him out of trouble. He also always sent me in to ask if we could get up yet. And Mom always said, "Nobody gets up until 5am."

So, I'd wait for what surely must have been an eternity and then I would approach Dad, again at the insistence of my brother. His answer? "Nobody gets up until 5am."

Which I thought was never going to get there! An hour is a very long time to play quietly in the dark with only the Christmas tree lights to guide you while you wait for your lazy teenage sisters and parents to drag themselves out of their cozy beds!

As you gaze around my home it is obvious we were having a relaxing, peaceful Christmas. Bookworm was so relaxed she couldn't even be bothered to get off the recliner to play Wii baseball!

Please disregard any background clutter you see. I would like to blame it on Christmas. But I won't because that is my normal. Clean but cluttered.

I always say you should never keep your house so clean that others feel the need to clean if you are dropping by. See? It's not being lazy! It's called being a good friend!

Amen.

Of course Popcorn was on her feet for the entire game. Of every game.

Oh! Did I mention Santa brought us a Wii for Christmas? That Santa is a smart guy. He knew the only way this family would move to the 21st century and actually own a gaming system was if he brought it!

I cooked dinner, and after we finished I said I was not cleaning the kitchen until I'd had a cup of coffee.

Studmuffin cleaned the kitchen.

While I had a few cups of Christmas cheer!

Just kidding. That is really only coffee, and I was supposed to be winking at my cleverness in getting my husband to clean the kitchen, which we all know is the worst part of any meal. However, I seem to look drunk.
*sigh*

After a hard day of napping, eating, playing Wii and eating some more, we all sat down to watch "Despicable Me."

We all enjoyed it. Even the dog.

And now we have plans to go to the nearest home for girls and adopt three little girls. One with a thing for unicorns, one with a permanent pink stocking hat, and one practical older girl to keep us all in line.

I need someone to keep my husband in line.

So, how was your Christmas? Calm? Restful? Frantic? Stressful? Overstuffed with food and presents? Let me know how you celebrated the birth of Our Savior this year!