December Fun

Celebrating the last month of 2012!

Showtime with my Mom

Roomie Reunion in Atlanta

Shewww! There is room service available.

Rocking Noon Year's Eve Pajama Party at the Children's Museum

Kyle and Claire planting flowers

Flowers need water to grow!

General Sarah oversess the New Year's Eve festivities

Hey, pretty girl!

Dino boys!

See you next year!

God Gave Us Christmas

It may seem that many of the books on our Christmas reading list were related to seasonal activities instead of emphasizing the true meaning of the holiday. Ok, so those books happened to fit better with the theme of my blog posts for December. But they aren't the only ones we read and one of our new favorite Christmas books is "God Gave Us Christmas". In a sweet, simple manner it emphasizes that God gave the gift of Jesus to each one of us - big or small, good or bad - and thus gave us Christmas.

Thank you, God, for the gift of Christmas, today and every day. 

(And thank you to friends for recommending some new books for our list next year!)

Other gifts awaited on Christmas morning. Little children aren't the only ones who can't sleep the night before Christmas - the grownups were just as excited! We were lucky to have Mimi, Babba, and Aunt Stephanie with us again for the big event!

Ready for the little ones!

Love at first sight!

Max was distracted from his own presents by his excitement about showing Sarah's presents to her!

Super Max!

Poor sick baby had to be woken up to celebrate and was ready for a nap after breakfast.

Max purchased presents for his family at his school store and was super excited to hand them out. He chose a football for Jason so they could play together up high. This was definitely a manipulative gesture on his part since football has been banned up high due to extreme enthusiasm. 

Sarah received a musical book of  Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer from Max. Clearly, she loved it!

Max performing Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer - his favorite song this year.

Max got me a book "because you like to read books a lot, Mommy." When he saw it on my nightstand later that day he asked if I had finished it yet. 

Max and Sarah saw this hat and immediately insisted on buying it for Babba because it is a Clemson Tiger. Sarah proudly wore it in the store and naturally it fit her her head perfectly. Can't wait to see Babba wearing this around town!

Max was thrilled to set up his racetrack and "electric cars", although he did question why Santa hadn't taken it out of the box. Hmmm.....all I can say is that Mommy Claus managed to put together the doll furniture and the table and chair set for both kids. Maybe Santa needed to go to bed early.

Other family members enjoyed the cars, too!

Break for Tea Time!

The puppet theatre was a huge hit, especially Sarah's favorite: "Melmo!"

In the words of our final book, the best gift under my tree will always be YOU!

The NIght(s) Before Christmas

Although this book offers a humorous view of the last minute details of Christmas, it is one we had hoped not to emulate, particularly the part about being sick in bed.

During our extended family celebration on the night before the night before the night before Christmas (otherwise known as December 22nd) Sarah began to run a high fever. Most of Sunday was spent with both Sarah and I coughing and sneezing on the couch instead of attending morning church or the Candlelight Service, which is my favorite activity of the season. For the first time in memory I did not participate in Country Santa in any manner on Christmas Eve. Instead, I took Sarah to the doctor to discover she had bronchitis.

Cold rain, no church, no Country Santa, no sleep and a sick child did not put me in the Christmas spirit. It wasn't until my parents and sister arrived later in the evening and we lit the Advent wreath Max made at church that I was able to put aside my own selfish pouting and reflect on the beauty of the Light of the World. It is as evident in my kitchen and in the hearts of my family as it is in any cathedral.

We closed the children's Christmas Eve with our traditional reading of The Night Before Christmas and the nativity story from the Bible (and a few extra stories from our reading list!)

Sarah got distracted from the book by the cookies for Santa. Apparently her illness wasn't enough to keep her away from sugar at bedtime! 

She insisted on wearing this Santa hat ("Mine!") throughout the season.

"And laying his finger aside of his nose

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose."

"But I heard him exclaim as he drove out of sight,

Merry Christmas to all  and to all a Good Night!"

Franklin's Christmas Gift

Franklin, a young turtle, learns about the blessing of giving to others, especially to those who are in need. Jason and I strongly believe one of our most important tasks as parents is to teach Max and Sarah the value of giving to others through their time, talents, and treasure. We hope they will grow to understand that it is a duty and a calling to be of service throughout the year, not only at Christmastime. Recently, we were honored to speak about giving at a United Way function. I shared that it was my parents who demonstrated that lesson repeatedly throughout my childhood. It was always done without fanfare or even acknowledgement - housing a child in crisis, clothing students who were cold, supporting those who grieved. December was the month of Country Santa. My family contributed greatly to the establishment of Country Santa, a non-profit organization providing toys and foods to rural disadvantaged families. My father continues to function as the Head Elf, and my sisters and I have bagged toys and distributed bags on Christmas Eve for more years than we can count. Max and Sarah happily joined the family tradition. Max was thrilled to make a bag for another five year old boy and took his task very seriously. Despite being surrounded by toys in the warehouse that he would love to try, he was focused only on what would bring happiness to this unknown child. 

This picture of him with Mrs. Country Santa makes my heart swell with happiness. Somewhere in the depths of my mother's house there is surely a picture of me doing the same thing at the same age with the same person. 

Babba explained that the volunteers at Country Santa help bag toys for Santa, but Santa comes to pick up the bags on Christmas Eve.  Each bag is labeled with the family's name and lined up for delivery. Max eyed the lines of bags for a moment before asking, "Is there a bag out there that says 'Richards' "on it?" Just checking.

Reading List Roundup

Christmas toys aren't limited to those brought by Santa! The pre-holiday toy of last year was the Little People Nativity set. This year, Sarah thoroughly enjoyed the Santa Claus nesting dolls we purchased on a trip to Russia. 

Holiday crafts!

My favorite gifts! 

Mimi helped Sarah make a handprint plate to match the one from Max two years ago. Both kids created tiles at school with a footprint manger. Best of all, I got to enjoy these gifts early!

If Max could create his own decorated tree, it might resemble this one from the Festival of Trees!

Even better than the construction tree was the actual construction happening around the trees!

Sarah's Christmas would include a tree like this with a Santa hat (she's obsessed with the hat!) and candy.

Max loves to snuggle with his "little one"!

Ready for the big day to arrive!