Christmas in Illinois

I'll try to keep this as short and sweet as possible, but with a ton of pictures, including our time celebrating Christmas at home, in Chicago and in MI, it might be tough!

I'll start with our Christmas morning at home...

As much as we love seeing all of our family at Christmas, there is just something special about being home with just our little family on Christmas morning. Brian started the morning reading the Christmas story from the Bible, as the girls ate their cinnamon rolls (we let Sammy sleep in and miss that part...but just this year!). We are so thankful for Christ's birth and the celebration of His life and love for us! Teaching our children the true meaning of Christmas is such a joy and we pray that they will always treasure that in their hearts. The Lord has truly blessed us in so many ways!

After breakfast, we moved on to see what Santa had brought. We don't emphasize Santa during this season, however, I must admit, I find it sort of cute how thrilled Hannah was to see that "he" had enjoyed our snacks we left him and the chocolate milk she insisted on leaving out. She was truly convinced he had been there and that he loved every morsel of our treats! Ellie, on the other hand, DID NOT want Santa anywhere near our house, so she wasn't too sure about the whole thing! Sammy woke up as we were doing stockings, so he joined the fun and was excited to get his first Thomas train! Next up, was gifts from Mommy and Daddy. Another fun, frenzy of wrapping paper everywhere and the kids getting as close to each other as possible to see what the other had gotten. Ellie loves her new monkey and Sammy was thrilled to get some more "boy" toys...tools! (With a house full of dolls and princesses, I think Brian was equally as excited to see those in the house!) Hannah and Ellie's Tinker Bell and fairies will be a nice addition to their princess collection...they have already had them "playing" together in the toy room! Hannah's new walkie talkies, while not the highest quality, are a fun way for the girls to keep in touch throughout the house!

Here's a collage of pictures from our morning...just a reminder that you can click on it to enlarge it.

After our morning at home, we headed to Chicago to celebrate with Brian's family. It's so fun to watch the cousins gather around Grandpa, almost knocking him over as they wait in anticipation for their turn to open a present. From aprons to armor to watches I can't understand, :O) we had a great afternoon!

As you'll see from the following pictures, Ruthie was often the center of attention (rightly so!)! The girls love their new baby girl cousin and are looking forward to playing with her as she grows! Speaking of girls, I LOVE the shot of Grandpa and his girls! I think he loves it too! :O)

As I look at these pictures again, I am just in awe of the blessing we have received in our children. The Lord has given us these precious little beings, and I can't help but be overcome with emotion of THANKS to Him!

*pics from MI to come...