The Magic Of Christmas

I know that Christmas is about thanking God for our blessings and spending time with family, especially those that we don't get to see very often.  And I make sure to focus on these things and to teach my children the meaning of this day.

But my favorite part about celebrating Christmas is giving gifts.  I absolutely love it.  Especially gifts for Christmas morning.  My kids are big believers in Santa Clause, although Ben is starting to ask a lot of questions.  The strategy of buying, hiding and setting up presents for Christmas morning is so exciting to me!  I also love the hunt of finding the toys that the kids have asked for from Santa.  Frankly, I'm not really sure how people did that before Amazon.com.  They probably had to plan ahead instead of shopping the last week like I do.

My mom was always a big believer in Christmas morning, and I remember all those years when I was a child and so excited to see what was waiting for me under the tree.  I have so much fun creating that same magic for our kids.

Here is what our house looked like after Santa paid a visit, while the kids were still sleeping.

And here's what it looked like once the kids were awake:

It's crazy how fast the morning flies by.  Seeing the kids enjoy playing with their new toys, though, lasts for days on end.  It makes me forget all the stress that this season brings, and reminds me of why Christmas is about cherishing your family and doing things that make them smile - whether it's a new toy, a pecan pie or ambrosia salad.

I hope that you all had a perfect Christmas, too.  Merry Christmas from our crazy family to yours.