Our Christmas morning began around 2am when a visitor that is about 36 inches tall climbed into our bed. I usually take her back to her bed but, it was Christmas so we snuggled up & went back to sleep until a little after 6. Robby & I got up first to get breakfast cooking. We had Bob & Jeannine, Rob's parents with us which was so fun! They were up soon after us and we enjoyed some Christmas music & some warm beverages before the little ones joined us.
Over 6 years of being a nurse, this was only my second Christmas day I have not been working. It was really special to be there for Elo's first Christmas. We were excited for the girls to wake up so we could get started celebrating the birth of an important person. Over the course of the past few months & more so in the past month, we have been talking with Charlotte more & more about how Jesus came as a baby & that we would soon be celebrating his birthday. We have our nativity set that G Gran gave us along with a couple books that talk about the nativity story. She has been hilarious every night when I tuck her in bed. She looks as me & says "where baby Jee-us go?" & then quickly answers her own question with, "baby Jee-us kiss-mas twee wif mommy daddy." She has been sighted frequently around the house holding baby Jesus (who is only about 3 inches long) & rocking him while she hums. She has also tucked him under a blankie in her room for nap time. She is so motherly! She makes sure that Eloise has the camel to chew on at her leisure. When I ask her to grab a toy that Elo can play with in the car, 9 times out off 10 she shows up at the front door with the camel. Eloise loves it!
So, once our sausage balls were ready, we sat down in front of the tree & Robby read to us from Char's Jesus Storybook Bible. We read the story of the birth of Jesus while Charlotte sucked her thumb & stuck her finger up her nose....so common these days. I would have thought the story would get old after so many years of hearing it. In actuality, it becomes more & more incredible each year as my understanding of the gospel increases. What an incredible sacrifice for God to become flesh & be born into the world as a baby. It was a great start to a great day at the Valentine home.
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| enjoying the Christmas Story |
Here are some photos of our gift giving/receiving....
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| She may look like she is attacking her sister but she is actually tickling her : ) |
Robby & I sometimes exchange gifts & sometimes we don't. This year was an exchanging year. One of the gifts I got for Rob that I was really excited about was a pocket knife (pictured below). When he opened the knife up I almost died....it was a bit larger than anticipated so it will definitely get any job done! He also got a new book & a cigar lighter.
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My mom & dad sent a package & had Robby wrap it. I opened it up & found this inside......
As it says in Acts, it is more blessed to give than to receive; so so true. We were thrilled to give the girls their own little kitchen to play with. We had been thinking about doing this all year & really wanted to build one for them. Again, out of all the play kitchens I have looked at, the Pottery Barn one was my favorite but cost an arm & 2 legs. I showed Robby the plans & he got to work! He did the constructing & I did the sewing....what a team we make! Maybe we will start mass producing ; )
We couldn't be happier with the finished product!
We couldn't be happier with the finished product!
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| She went straight to the table, grabbed a sausage ball & stuck it it her oven! Ha! |
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| Peeking to see what is under the kitchen sink. |
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| Eloise showing her excitement for what Charlotte gave her from the fridge...her beverage of choice : ) |
After a fun filled morning, the girls got all fixed up in their new outfits from Auntie Deb & Uncle Joe. They looked SO CUTE! We went to the Christmas morning service at CCC & enjoyed worshipping on the day we celebrate the birth of our risen king.
Here they are all dolled up...
We came home from the service & put the little ones down for naps. We then got to work in the kitchen with preparations for our dinner & desserts. Chef Robby was in charge of the Prime Rib which turned out ultra delicious. We also had mashed potatoes & a mixed green, walnut & Gorgonzola cheese salad. We were all pretty full! We had to have a couple bites of each dessert though....
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| Our friends Erik & Jennifer were adopted into our family for the evening. Charlotte served Erik some protein & carbs to top things off. |
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| Steve, Jenny, Rob, Me, Jen & Erik |
The gifts given & received were plentiful & lots of smiles were had by all. We have some new books & toys to keep us busy in 2012. We were thankful to celebrate Christmas with the Valentine clan & look forward to the next time we will be together. Crazy but the next time Grammy & Pop Pop visit will be in March & baby Isaac will be here!
Our family
Praying your holiday was as joy filled as our was! I will say it one last time....Merry Christmas!
looks like a wonderful Christmas! The kitchen turned out sooo cute! Can't wait to chat, at work now. I'll call you sooN!
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