My little Christmas babies in their Christmas eve jammies. Aren't they so cute! Since the kids were going with their dad after they opened Christmas presents on Christmas morning, I took the kids to both sets of my parents on Christmas eve. I had wanted to take them to a movie but everything was just about sold out the night before and I didn't feel like fighting crowds on Christmas eve. So we got the house all cleaned and then went out to lunch at Rumbis. That is a real treat for us! We normally never go out to eat. It was so fun! Then we went to see Grandma So-So and Grandpa Terry to wish them a Merry Christmas. Then we went home and had a little nap before going to Grandma and Grandpa Dietzs' house for dinner. After dinner the kids opened up their new PJs. Once they changed into their new jammies we went home. I took the really really long way home so that the kids were asleep by the time we got home. This was good because I had a long night ahead of me! My little brother Josh came over and helped me put the kids kitchen together. Ok actually Josh did most of the work on the kitchen while I got everything else ready. Thanks Josh! I couldn't have done it with out you! One day you will be doing this for your own kids :)
We didn't finish the kitchen until after midnight. But look at Joseph's face! It was totally worth it! The kids were both so excited when they saw the kitchen. They almost didn't want to open any presents because they wanted to play.
Santa brought Joseph a light saber. On Christmas eve the Relief Society president stopped by with this light saber. Someone in the ward had somehow ended up with an extra light saber for their grandson. They brought the light saber over to the RS president's house and told her to give it to Joseph. I was so touched that someone in our ward loves my little boy enough that thought about him.
The kids had so much fun opening their presents. Joseph loved his new scooter. Thanks Disney Movie Rewards!
My little Christmas Princess! I bought Anna this cute little dress. Notice her cute red Paten-leather shoes...see the story behind them below.
So I have to tell the story of Anna's Cabbage Patch baby. Santa brought her a Cabbage Patch newborn doll. It comes in a little cabbage leaf and you don't know if it's a boy or a girl until you open it. I was really excited for Anna to get her first Cabbage Patch doll. I had my step-dad, Terry, refinish a doll cradle that my great-grandpa Leonard made that I used to play with when I was little. I had my super talented Sister-in-law Erica make a cute little crib mattress and baby quilt and pillow. It was all a darling lavender color. To my surprise Anna opened her Cabbage Patch baby and it was a BOY! I just laughed. I was sure it was going to be a baby girl. Anna of course could care less. For anyone who doesn't know Cabbage Patch babies are already named and come with a little birth certificate. The baby's name is Salvador Ronald. Crazy name huh? So I told her to just call him Ron, which also happens to be her Cookie Grandpa's name. All day she has walked around calling him Baby Ron. It is so cute! Tonight I found her tucking Baby Ron into bed. First they were saying prayers and then she read him Green Eggs and Ham as a bedtime story. She cracks me up!
This Christmas ended up being a really special Christmas. I wanted to write down the feelings and experiences that I had this year. I'm not going to lie. I was not really looking forward to Christmas this year. I just wasn't in the Christmas mood. The holidays can be hard when you're single. Now don't get me wrong I have a really awesome family and they are so supportive, but I was still feeling kind of bummed out. I kept praying that I would be able to get in the Christmas spirit. It is often times through someone else that our prayers are answered and our needs are met. Some incredibly in-tune people knew I needed some holiday cheer. Someone did the 12 days of Christmas for my little family. Every night for 12 nights we found a small gift on our doorstep. The kids loved this! I loved it! I found myself looking forward to each night and wondering what the next gift would be. On Thursday night when I got home from picking up the kids from their Dad's, there was a bag full of gifts on my porch. The bag of gifts was just for me. I couldn't believe it. There was a note attached saying not to open them until Christmas morning. I hadn't even really thought about the fact that I wouldn't really have anything to open on Christmas morning. After all I am a mom and it's all about my kids. But this gesture touched me so deeply. Someone out there knew me enough to know that I would have my kids all taken care of but that I wouldn't do anything for myself. I have to admit that it was so fun to think about having gifts to open on Christmas morning. Later that night when I went to get our 12 days of Christmas gift off the porch there were 2 packages there as well, one for Joseph and one for Anna. Again it was an anonymous donor. It ended up being a really nice outfit and pair of shoes for each of them. On Christmas eve when Josh went to leave I found a card on my door step with a cashier's check inside for $40. I felt like every time I opened my door there was another gift. I couldn't believe the generosity. I felt so overwhelmed with gratitude to my loving Father in Heaven who knew exactly what I needed this holiday season. My hope is that I can be able to pay it forward in the coming years. Christmas will truly never be the same for me again. I will always cherish this Christmas and the tender feelings that came with it. If any of the special people who contributed to my special Christmas are reading this I hope that you know how truly grateful I am for your generosity. I hope that all of you had a very Merry Christmas!
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