Christmas Blessings

Well, it's December 28th and another Christmas has come and gone. I've tried this year to remember the true meaning of Christmas. I admit that at times, I've been caught up in the gifts, the cooking, the busyness of the season. I am so blessed! God has given me the best family to share all my holidays with. We really did have a wonderful Christmas. I thought I would share just a few of the highlights of the season.

Christmas Eve we always go down to my mom & dad's where we celebrate with my two brothers and their families, my parents and my aunt. Of course, the crowd continues to grow, but their family room does not. :) We decided that there really isn't a place big enough for the number of people we cram into one room. Here is a picture of my three beautiful grandbabies taken at Granny's in Bippy's big comfy chair. I've tried for 5 1/2 months to get a decent picture of the 3 of them together. I actually got a couple good ones this time.

These little rascals continue to grow and change. Bryce is not so keen on getting his picture taken these days, unless it's his idea. I have quite a few pictures of him where he sticks his hand out, just as I'm shooting. :) He's a character, that's for sure. He's a very sweet boy though...I do love him so.Here's Jayme with Baby Collin. He was wearing the Santa Claus outfit and he was roasting when he woke up. So, he got to wear his cute little 1st Christmas bib. He's a very good baby. Always happy!

Here's Krista and Mia at my parents house too. David and Krista had to leave for awhile--they had Christmas Eve service at church, so we tried to get some family pictures of them before they left. However, once they left, we didn't do anymore of my family. It got pretty hectic. I'm not sure why Mia looks so sad here. Bryce and Uncle Josh are becoming really good buddies. Josh took him out on Tuesday for a special day. They got an apple juice slush at Sonic and some Tootsie Rolls at CVS. That's all Bryce wanted to do. Well, that and ride in Uncle Josh's red truck. That was fun!

Mia got a new pink tricycle from Granny & Bippy. She loved getting on and off of it by herself. (sorry about the red eyes--I didn't get them repaired on the computer upstairs and I'm having trouble with the laptop!). Mia really enjoyed Christmas this year. She loved opening presents and loved everything she got.

Christmas morning, we were invited over to Josh and Jayme's to watch the boys open what Santa brought. They had told Bryce not to get up until the clock said 8 something on it. We got there at 8:00 so we wouldn't miss him getting up. He got up about 45 minutes later, looking like this:

But, he came right into the living room and started opening presents!! He had a lot of fun and got some great things.

And, here is Collin with one of his new chewie toys. The poor guy is teething and just chews and drools all the time. I sure hope he has a tooth pop through soon!

Bryce got a talking United States map. He's quite fascinated with the different states. He started that right after Uncle Doug was here visiting. He couldn't believe that Papaw had a big brother who lived in Texas. So, he wanted to know where Texas was. This map tells the states and their capitals. Here is Uncle Josh trying it out--trying to see if he can guess the capitals, I think.

I'll close this entry with just one more picture. It's a picture of Bryce with his Christmas gift from his mommy and daddy. He has been asking for a kitten for a long time. So, they got him one for Christmas! Isn't he cute with it? He named it Lightning (as in McQueen), but today he told me that he was changing it's name to Monkey. Not sure why, but...well, he's 4. :) He said at lunch today that he just wanted to go home and see his toys for awhile. They have had so many Christmases to go to that he hasn't had a chance to enjoy all his things.
Thanks for looking at my pictures from Christmas. I pray that the coming year brings you joy and peace through the person of Jesus Christ. For, it's in Him and Him alone that we can have true Joy, true Peace and a Life in Him. My goal (not resolution) for 2009 is to become more like Jesus Christ--to fall more in love with Him through learning more about Him. I pray for my family as they serve Him and search for His will in each of their lives. So, Merry CHRISTmas and a Happy New Year. May God bless each of you in the year to come.