Christmas 2009 - The Extended Version, with Bonus Features

This year we had a wonderful Christmas. It was filled with talk of Jesus, family, good food, relaxation and presents.

I thought I'd share our Christmas festivities with you. On Christmas Eve we went to the "family friendly" service at our church. Our pastor "Uncle Steve" read the kids the story of Christmas as they gathered around him at the front of the church (he was even in a rocking chair)...it was really cute.

After service we went to my cousin's house to celebrate Christmas with my mom's side of the family. Ever since my mom was little Christmas was celebrated at my great-grandmother's house on Christmas Eve. I remember going there when I was little in my pjs and staying up until after midnight to open gifts. The tradition of going to her house ended when Gramma got too sick to have us over and she passed away two years ago (at the ripe young age of 99!). But, we have continued to get together...to keep the tradition going. We've had some off years but I'm sure we'll get it together soon. It was nice to get everyone together (except Aunt Roni who was sick).

Here are my babies on Christmas Eve at cousin Shanette's house:

Miss Jamison. She was excited to put on a skirt and tights.

I swear Caleb is going to turn into a chip.

My great-grandmother used to always makes these sandwiches. I'm not sure what is in the middle, maybe cream cheese with food coloring. My uncle really wanted to make them. They look just like hers used to look!

My mom and I made a cookbook to give out as a gift this year. It turned out really well and people seemed to like it. Here's my mom explaining her deviled egg recipe to my cousin's husband, Tim. He LOVES her deviled eggs. See my mom making them...there were eggs boiling when we got there and Tim said he was going to make some. I have to wonder if it was a ploy to get my mom to make them :) If so, it worked. She's so sweet!

Here's Jamison with Shyanne, Shanette and Tim's daughter.

My mom brought old pictures and it was a lot of fun looking at my mom and her siblings when they were younger. Shanette got a kick out of seeing her dad in his younger days...he was cool (or at least he thought he was).

My mom and her brother. She is the oldest of 5. My Aunt Tammy was there too with her family.

After leaving Shanette's we went home to put the kids in bed. Then it was time to wrap...or time for Mommy and Rondell to wrap. I'm not the best wrapper and I'm not a night owl, so I have been known to crash on them before. I actually stayed up this year! We were up until 1:30, which is VERY late for me. This is the fourth year that my mom has spent the night with us and I love that we created that tradition.

Did you notice a little someone in the background?

Christmas morning...we actually got to sleep until 8:00! Here's the tree before all the damage:

Time to open presents!!!!!

Jamison handed out all of the gifts.

Aunt Roni bought her a Princess Tiana cookbook. There are some good recipes in there. She loved it. You can also see the Legos that she got from Gramma Lee (my mom).

Mr. Caleb checking out his new Thomas station. He was so excited for Christmas this year and all of the presents. He got a ton of Thomas stuff and Cars stuff.

Big Mack...another great gift from Aunt Roni. Caleb already had a smaller Mack but he's been asking for Big Mack for weeks. He loved it. We also got him a "Cars new racing track", as he calls it. Poor Caleb though, he was so overwhelmed because he didn't know what to play with first.

Rondell and I bought my mom a picture calendar (thanks for the tip Lyn!). She is always asking for pictures of the kids and now she'll have them all in one place. I put a lot of her favorite pictures in it. As you can see, she liked it a lot and that makes me happy (Mom, so sorry to post the ugly cry).
Maw Maw and Paw Paw came over too to help spread the Christmas love. Paw Paw was so excited he said he wanted to come over at 4:00 am.

Jamison...overloaded with paper.

A shot of some of the gifts. They really cleaned up!

Rondell is a huge New York Giants fan, so my mom bought him a personalized pullover. I love the smile on his face:

His favorite number is 7, so we put a 7 on the back.

Of course, there were some classic lines...On Christmas Eve Jamison said that Jesus must be tired "because it's His birthday tomorrow." When Jamison opened the Wii she said "look Mom, we got a free Wii." When Caleb opened a few things he would say "I knew it!" or "oh, snap." They were a lot of fun to watch.

Here they are in their Christmas pjs:

So, the Bonus Feature:

After we were done opening gifts and settling down a bit I remembered that Jamison had a gift for us from school. It was in a brown paper bag that she decorated. In the bag was this note (along with an ornament that she made):

My sweet girl has been rooting for me to get my sewing machine for weeks. I love that she was so thoughtful to put this in her note.

Well...my mom gets up and when she comes back....

She gives me THIS!!!!! She said she didn't know how she was going to give it to me, but after I read the note from Jamison she thought it was perfect...and it was. Jamison was so excited for me. I think I'll have to make her something first! I can't wait to crack this baby open...right after I sign up for a class at JoAnn's to learn how to work it. THANKS MOMMY!

While we all received wonderful gifts, it was also a day to remember the best gift of all...Jesus. I know I am guilty of getting wrapped (ha, ha) up in the presents, food, etc., but I pray to continue throughout the year to remember why we celebrate.

How was your Christmas?