CELEBRATING JESUS' BIRTH!

But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord."

--Luke 2: 10-11

Hi Friends!

I hope you are all having a wonderful day as we celebrate the ultimate gift of Jesus Christ, our Savior! We are having a nice quiet family day at home --or at least, as quiet as it gets with four kids on Christmas.

Last night after church at 7 p.m., we put the younger kids (Nate and Isaac) to bed. Then the older kids got to play Santa's elves and put the presents under the tree. They had a great time especially after they discovered the "giggle balls" from Grandpa John and Grandma Linda. It's surprising they didn't wake the little ones up, but luckily for us -- they're hard sleepers!

This morning Molly (our early riser) woke up at 6 a.m. At least she decided to wait until 7 a.m. to wake the other kids up. But it was still rather early for us, and Isaac was a tad crabby. We opened gifts in a frenzied manner as kids do. Molly's favorite gift was a foozball table. There was a string leading the kids to it from the Christmas tree. It was funny, because it led all over the house before its ultimate end outside.

Cameron's favorite gifts were movies. Among others he got Kung Fu Panda, Alvin and the Chipmunks, and several Veggie Tales movies. And we all know how much Cameron likes to watch TV!

Nate and Isaac both say their best gifts were the cash they got from me and Bill. I guess you can't go wrong with cold, hard cash! They are already making big plans in regards to how to spend it!

Bill got a bunch of his childhood pictures from his Mom and Dad. That was his favorite gift!

My favorite gifts were also from Bill parents, most especially the beautiful beaded cross necklaces and a garden stone in the shape of a cross -- it has the Bible verse: "We walk by faith, not by sight." 2 Cor. 5:7 How true that is!

After the frenzied gift opening, Bill and I managed to take a 3 hour nap while the kids destroyed the house. Just kidding, but when I got up, it basically looked like Christmas had puked in our living room. I love kids -- really, I do!!! Although, Cameron being his usual organized and autistic self had already sorted and put away all his gifts and was busy watching movies.

Since we got up at noon, we have all been just hanging out playing around with the Christmas stuff. I basically just bought trinkets from the dollar store, but they've been a big hit! Bill, Nate, Isaac, and Molly had some spirited games of foozball! They even made me play. I'm horrible (mostly due to my nervous system problems and lack of hand-eye coordination), but it was fun!

We're getting ready to do our Christmas dinner. Terri has provided the ham. It looks lovely and colorful with pinaeapples and cherries on it. I'm making corn muffins, rice, potatoes, and peas to go with it. Bill also picked up a Boston cream pie for desserts. And of course -- we have some cookies left over from the batch we baked for Santa yesterday. So, we're not lacking for desserts!

Nate and Isaac are outside riding their new bikes (courtesy of our church deacons), and Cam and Molly are inside watching TV and hanging out. I think they're dragging a little bit after the early start this morning.

I hope that you are all having a wonderful day with your family! I am feeling very good -- I even have a new headache medicine that appears to be working. Slow down and enjoy what really matters. I'm hard-headed, so God had to give me a life-threatening illness in order to get me to do that. Hopefully, you're not as stubborn as me and you can learn vicariously through my experience!

I hope you enjoy the photos I'm posting today. They were taken Christmas Eve before we went to church. Thanks to Annie for the family Christmas socks. Unfortunately, Bill wasn't wearing his, which is why he is absent from that picture.

Much Love,

Michele