Giving Mom a Break

I kid you not: "Mom, would you like me to clean-up so that you can have a break?"  "You could even rest during quiet time."

So, my two sweethearts scrubbed their little hearts out and tried to clean up the dishes after lunch.  That was the best Christmas present ever.  I can only wonder if it has something to do with the chore charts they got for Christmas.  One chore is to do something nice for someone without being asked.  I'll just take it where I can get it. Thanks, Adelaide and Elias.  You are such great helpers.

On Christmas Day in the Morning

Christmas morning began earlier than I expected.  I'm not sure which time zone Elias was watching, but he dashed down to his stocking before it was seven zero zero.  He then proceeded to run to the third floor and open it while waking his grandparents.  I decided to haul my self out of bed, despite having hit the covers only a few hours earlier.  (Notice in the background that it is still dark.)  I wanted to at least catch Addie's expressions while she opened her stocking.  Our stockings were a hit and things like Playdough and kids' scissors hit the spot.  I think the thrill of Elias' day was the Spiderman watch which he kept telling us is water-resistant.  Addie's highlight was her Barbie mermaid (Gaga's gift, not mine!).  Both kids also enjoyed musical presents like a drum and a microphone for Addie to sing into her radio.

We ate our Christrmas dinner with roast beef, horseradish sauce, dill carrots, peas, and Yorkshire pudding.  The meal was capped off with my English trifle that the kids helped me make the day before.  We had them in bed by 6:30 and we rolled into bed by 8:30 after having tried to clean up and put away the Christmas presents and dishes.  We were up the following morning so we could both preach.  Exhaustion is now waning on this 4th day of Christmas.  Merry Christmas to you all!

A beautiful babe--whose initials are not JC

Oh, Christmas Tree

Last year, we started a neat tradition of going to cut down our tree and then haul it home.  This year with our weak and aching bodies we got our tree up on Monday afternoon.  I hopped in the car with the two older kids and we picked a tree right out of the lot.  It said the tree was between 7 and 8 feet tall.  But, it appears to be at least 9 feet tall because Adam had to climb a ladder and jump to get the angel on.  I'm so glad it's up, though, and the kids had a wonderful time decorating it with Ga-ga and Pop-pop.  Sometimes, good traditions come out of less than perfect circumstances.

The Christmas Program: Santa and a Singer

In a very strange way, Elias got his wish.  Instead of being cast as Santa Claus in the church Christmas Pageant, he was cast as Santa for his school program.  After the event, we caught him with four bagels and cream cheese.  When I asked him why, he replied:"I want as big a tummy as Santa Claus."

Meanwhile, our singer girl, belted out the words to all of her songs and loved jingling her jingle bells.  She did a terrific job.

Oh, holy night!

We weren't quite sure if we were going to make it to this moment.  Josiah came down with a bug on Thursday.  Then Adam and Elias spent the evening together around the throne on Friday.  On Saturday, I was having the same troubles and Josiah was still ill. We both stayed home from work this morning and watched as the acolytes and choir processed by our dining room window as we sat around in our pj's trying to wash loads of sheets and towels.  We sent Eli and Addie off with their sitter for church and tried to rest.  We had enough energy to shower and attend the wonderful pageant.  We were careful not to sit near anybody and we left as soon as it was over, which meant missing the extravagant potluck. Once home, we dined instead on Saltines and warmed chicken broth.

Adelaide was an angel again this year and Elias was thrilled to be a Roman soldier.  In fact, he got his best buddy to be a soldier with him and they guarded Cesar Augustus.

The pageant must have made such a mark on Elias because when Adam went to pick him up from school on Friday his teachers stopped Adam at the door.  They then told him that Elias had been directing a Christmas pageant for the last hour and a half.  He assigned all the kids parts, gave them props and costumes and even made a star.  He also told me that he had made scripts but when his grandmother asked him about it later he said that they were "scriptures!"  Tonight he told me he was ready to start directing the Easter pageant.

Advent II and Advent III

We hosted a St. Nicholas Party in which we read a story about St. Nicholas of Myra, lit the Advent wreath, and decorated St. Nick cookies that I made out of gingerbread.  I had other activities planned but the kids enjoyed running up and down the three flights of stairs more than anything else.

On Sunday afternoon, the Moms' group hosted their annual cookie exchange so Adam hosted a complimentary potluck for the guys at the Rectory.  Chili, ice cream, and running up and down three flights of stairs again.  I then headed off to be at Redeemer's Lessons and Carols which was glorious.  There were over 40 choristers and the adult choir.  It was truly a lovely evening. 

On Second Advent I decorated the outside of our house, so third Advent I started on the inside.

On the floor is our family's nativity set that has been passed down from my great-grandmother to grandmother to mother and now to me.  I think it's from Germany originally, but my Mom will have to correct me if it's not.  As a child I loved setting it out and my mom loved to reset it after I was done.  I have told the kids they can't touch it because the pieces are truly fragile and close to one hundred years old.

  I put my Tanzanian magi here across the room from the nativity clan.

Here are two sets of preschool nativity sets.  Yesterday I overheard the kids having a very extensive theological debate over the sex of the angels.  I think they finally concluded that the annunciation angel was a girl and the angel who led the shepherd was a boy.  I guess I'll have to google that.

My nativity displays with the Israeli holy family at the top and in between the Kenyan nativity family.

                                      And here is my Rwandan set made out of banana leaves.

These are the wise men that are a part of the family nativity set.  They are up high on the mantel so that no kids will get to them and they need to have some space to travel until they reach the baby on Epiphany.

I strung white lights over the mirror, bought a few poinsettias, and found a new plant this year called the Star of Bethlehem.  I bookended those plants on the mantel and interspersed glitter trees from Trader Joes and stockings along the front.

    The dining room has been appointed as the St. Nicholas room.

My mother-in-law made this beautiful St. Nicholas star and I so enjoy displaying him.

I have my mother and grandmother to thank for giving me the joy of Christmas decorating.  I spent all day in my pj's arranging and rearranging the living room and dining room.  Of course, the three kids made the process a bit slower.  But, we had fun and I find tremendous satisfaction in preparing my home for the Blessed Babe.  Hopefully, that process is preparing a home in my own heart, too.  I do try and pray through the process.  Some times those are true prayers of petition, "Please don't drop that Adelaide" but other times they are just prayers of Thanksgiving for the things I can touch as I try to make room for the babe in all kinds of places in our house.