Such a special & sacred day to celebrate Christ's birth! As usual, S read the CHRISTmas Story out of Luke 2 to our family before any of the other festivities began. The kids listened for a moment from the loft & then came down stairs as the anticipation was too much. :)
They were kind to give us until nearly sunrise before waking us by all going into Panda's room and chanting over the monitor..."Wake up! Wake up!" Ha! Not exactly the way I prefer to be woken up but they are effective.
The kids get three main gifts each year...each resembling the three gifts brought to the Christ Child...gold, frankincense & myrrh. Gold is the item they really want {Panda an ice cream stand, Bear an air soft gun & Bubba a fishing rod & reel}, myrrh is an item of clothing as the oil was traditionally used {Panda got new Dory undies, Bear a sweatshirt & Bub a fishing shirt} & finally frankincense is something that will deepen their faith as the oil was used to anoint the temple in olden days {Panda received a scripture hanging for her room, Bear a new devotional by Louie Giglio & Bubba a book...and all tickets to see Mack Brock lead a night of worship in a few weeks at an nearby church}
It is so fun to watch them together and the friendships that they share. My heart was a little heavy as I was thinking of a sweet little face who is alone this Christmas but has her family working diligently to bring her home. We all commented that we can't wait to share Christmas with her next year. She is so loved. We stuffed a few little items in Ailee James's stocking in anticipation of Gotcha Day 2018!
The sweetest gift giving are those that the kids save for and purchase themselves for one another. I received a few new spatulas & running socks! Exactly what I needed! And the boys swapped fishing bait and guitar picks...while Panda scored a Moana movie, "Under Army" shirt {her code name for Under Armor} & a mermaid doll.
We enjoyed a lazy morning together in our pjs with Birthday Cake for Jesus before heading to Grandaddy's around lunchtime.
Thank you, Jesus...God and sinners reconciled by You. There is no greater gift.
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