Yay Christmas!

I love pretty much everything about Christmas. I love the gatherings, the music, the decorations, the shopping. And I LOVE presents! I love getting them, giving them and even wrapping them. I love the church services, the traditions, the memories, the food! My least favorite part of Christmas is putting it all away for another year!

This Christmas was especially nice for me in spite of the fact that several around me are having their hardest Christmas ever and just want to get through it. I had lots of time to prepare and it was virtually stress free. The best part was sharing it with our kids. Whit and Travis came and spent most of Christmas Eve and all of Christmas day with us. Chloe the Wonder Dog came too, and we had a lot of fun playing with and being entertained by her. That dog is crazy about toys! Sydney was not so happy - she was a bit like Eeyore watching Tigger bounce around. I'm not sure she has forgiven us yet!

Alex was home, too, and kept us all laughing with his non-stop-one-liners. The kid truly could be a stand up comic! He's been putting his Christmas present to good use....we got him a ski pass to Schweitzer Mountain. Even as I write this, he is there as a leader for the high school youth group ski retreat. Snow just gets him excited and there's plenty for him to be excited about this year. I think he has a secret dream to hit the professional snowboarding circuit and board all the great mountains in North America. Hopefully by January he will be ready to concentrate on classes instead of daydreaming about three feet of fresh powder!

Keith and I keep saying how much fun it is to spend time with our kids. Travis fits right in and is just one of the family. We count our blessings every day that Whitney picked such a good one! I know not every Christmas will be like this one what with sharing them with Trav's parents and someday kids, etc. Therefore, I (like Jesus' mom) am "treasuring all this in my heart."

Here are some pics:

Chloe, Alex and Travis can't wait to open presents!

Gotta love new doggie toys! Chloe must have been VERY good this year!

Is it time to eat yet?????

The best part of Christmas is watching your
kids and grandkids.....I mean, grand-dog open gifts!