Christmas 2012

Christmas! It's a wonderful time of year. We tried to teach the boys about why we celebrate Christmas and why we get presents. They are good parrots and so when we asked why we have Christmas they will say "Because Jesus was born!". I got a few different answers when I asked why we get presents "Because we are GOOD!" "Because you love me" for example. These are all good answers, I told the boys that we give each other presents because the Three Wise Men brought gifts to Jesus, but I am thinking that I truly give them presents just because I love them. 

Hopefully over the next few years of their lives we can bring the Savior more and more into the center of our children's Christmas celebrations. For now though, they are pretty amazingly focused on presents- which for a 2 and 4 year old is probably pretty normal. They also seem to enjoy the extra family time we have at Christmas- so that is good.

At the beginning of December J and I went to our church Christmas party- it was an evening in Bethlehem. Dressing up was optional but since I was part of the musical program that night I decided that I would wear a costume I had leftover from a show about the parable of the ten virgins that I was in a few years ago. J wanted to dress up too, so dressed him as a shepherd, in a short yellow robe of mine and a head scarf. It was a fantastic night.

I don't know if it was something that Ken and I should have discussed before we had kids, but we really hadn't decided how we were going to handle Santa. But Santa is everywhere and J really got excited about Santa this year. He got really worried about the fact that our house doesn't have a fireplace, and as such we don't have a chimney! I cannot count how many times I was asked how Santa was going to get into our house. A friend of mine told me about the Santa key that her family has. It's a magic key and when Santa (and only Santa) uses it, it will let him into our house. So I found some old looking keys at Hobby Lobby and made our family a Santa Key- On the morning of Christmas Eve, J put the key out on the door. It worked, on Christmas morning the boys discovered that Santa had left the key right next to the plate of cookies we had left out for him- he even ate a few of the cookies!

Later that day we gathered with the Turner family to participate in the traditional Turner family Christmas Eve dinner- Fried Chicken, Panettone and hot cocoa. The food was great and the company was fabulous. We let the boys open one gift a piece on Christmas Eve night. Pajama's of course! The next morning the boys were awake dark and early- it was 6, maybe 6:30. J sneaked downstairs and discovered that lots of presents had magically appeared overnight! He was very excited. 

 My dad, Grandpa Turner made each of the boys a beautiful wooden toy- B got a truck and J received exactly what he asked for "A Train with Wings"

 Here is B with his new Giraffe "Tufty" I saw this stuffed animal and I HAD to get it for my little boy who once had a little tuft of hair right on top of his head. I know he has more hair now, but he will always be that sweet almost hairless boy to his mommy.

On the day after Christmas the boys cousin A came to stay with us for a few days. The boys had tons of fun with her, J didn't get to say goodbye when she left a little earlier today and he cried when he found out she was gone. I hope that they always love their cousins as much as they do right now when they are small

So, That is Christmas 2012- I was a little worried about Christmas this year. I wasn't sure I had it in me to make it special for my boys. My heart still hurt a little. If all had gone well with our first pregnancy this year I would be about 26 weeks pregnant.  If the second pregnancy had been viable I would have been 16 weeks along at Christmas time, that's right about the time I start to feel my babies movements. But that wasn't meant to be. I've had some very tender moments over the past few weeks and I am feeling a little better about those lost pregnancies. I feel more at peace and all in all I had a wonderful Christmas. I know why I celebrate Christmas- I want to celebrate my Savior Jesus Christ. He was born! He came into this world as a baby and he grew and learned and served and suffered and eventually died then rose again! He did all that for me and for you. I am grateful that this year at Christmas I was blessed to experience the healing power of his atonement at work in my life, in my heart. I love my Savior.