Navidad 2009

This one was one for the books.  So special that nothing I can write will give it enough credit.  The girls and I have Jim at home for two weeks so that in itself is the best treat and gift our family could have gotten.  He has eagerly taken over cooking duties and has made some delicious meals for us.  We had the traditional Payne family enchiladas and fried beans for Christmas Eve before heading out to our church's candlelit service.

Here's Lulu stirring the enchilada sauce in her Christmas jammies while Jim worked on the refried beans...

The service was simple, sweet, filled with classic Christmas worship sang in the dark in between readings of the Christmas story.  Lucy who is usually at children's church and never in the big sanctuary sat with us for the first time.  All the children were there with their parents and it was such a sight to see.  Their little faces didn't know what to think of the dim lighting and all the great songs.  It was freezing outside that night so it was nice to linger in the church's lobby drinking hot apple cider with our friends and watching the kid's excitement increase with every passing minute.  So funny, you could sense their anticipation and joy.... their little hearts couldn't take it!

We came home and tracked Santa on the NORAD website.  What a cool tool and how fun that a government website would do that for the kiddos!  We had held back our talks about Santa all month 'cause we wanted to make Jesus the focus of our celebration but on Christmas eve we started getting her excited about Santa's visit and tried to prepare her for the treats she would get in the morning.  She asked how he would get into our house and like the good parents we are we told her he'd come through the chimney :)  You could see her little eyes get bigger and brighter listening to all the details about Santa and by the time she went to bed her excitement was at an all time high but she was very purposeful about trying to go to sleep since we told her Santa would wait until everyone was asleep to visit.  She normally sings, talks, spells in bed and we hear all that through the monitor but on Christmas Eve she was quiet as can be even though it took her about an hour to fall asleep.  I could just see the wheels turning in her little 3 year old brain trying to make sense of it all. 

Can you see the reindeer? :)  Thanks NORAD!! 

Jim and I woke up first on Christmas morning to get a fire going, make coffee and make sure everything looked good for the kids.  They were up by 6:45am.  We got Jenna and then went to get Lucy with video camera in hand.  I think we captured that moment when she was coming off her drowsy state and realized it was Christmas morning.  The next 3 hours were spent opening gifts.  Lucy unwrapped most of them regardless of who they were for and then they played and played and then played some more.  The funniest thing to watch was that the kids played with all the toys not knowing which was for who.  It baffles me that a 3 and half year old and a 10 month old can like the same things and play so well together.

Here are the gifts Santa left for the girls... four for each.  The ones on the right are for Jenna and the left for Lucy.

Lucy playing with Jenna's tea party set...

So excited about the Dallas Cowboys pom poms her grandparents gave her...

Amongst Lucy's favorite toys were a hungry, hungry hippo board game, Jenna's tea party set, Jenna's ball popper, a Melissa and Dough birthday cake set and her new leaspter games (Wall-E and a Pet one).  She also LOVED her new princess bathroom, her Dora watch (she calls it her tic toc), her new jammies and bracelet from Titi and a pretty puppet ballerina her Granny got her.

Admiring her newly decorated princess bathroom... a gift from grandparents!

 They were so excited about their new pink bathroom that insisted on a bath right away...

Jenna's favorite gifts included a praying teddy bear, the infamous ball popper and the Melissa and Doug wood ring stacker...

Jim and I got some pretty cool stuff as well.  My favorite treat was an amazon gift card which I promptly used to order 12 books I had been wanting to get.  I keep a little list on my laptop and was excited to get most of the titles I had collected for several months.  My box should be arriving Today and I can hardly wait!!  Other favorites include a 2 pound box of See's candies and some gorgeous Gulten earrings from sister Jennifer who you can always count on for the coolest gifts.

Jim is super excited about our new panini maker and food vaccum sealer but I think (hope :) my gift to him was the one he'll treasure the most.  I got him a new gorgeous, genuine leather bound Bible with his name engraved in front.  We must have a good 10 Bibles in our house now but I wanted him to have a very special one that was also the perfect size to carry with him to church.  I remember getting my very own special Bible for my 31st birthday a few years back.  It was so beautiful I wanted to read it from cover to cover immediately.  Anyway, he also got some other great gifts.  It was fun to treat him since he never buys stuff for himself and never asks for anything.

Dinner on Christmas day was beef tenderloin, individual potato gratins, brussel sprouts with bacon and natillas.  Jim made the whole thing while the girls and I took naps.  Yes, indeed, a keeper he is!  Later that night we had our neighbors the Deebs over for cocktails and for the girls to exchange gifts.  It was the perfect ending to a really sweet day.  The girls and I never got off our jammies, it was glorious!

Here they are in jammies... I think it's funny how Jenna is eyeing Lucy's cup.  If we are not careful about putting away her sister's drinks we find her sucking the last few sips off them.  It's funny to watch :)

Well, that's all I had.  How we pray that your day was just as nice and that the rest of this year will find you with family and friends rejoicing over all that is good and sweet and pure thanks to Him who chose a manger and a cross so we could have life.

All my love,
Danaly