Christmas was wonderful! We spent a lot of time with family and loved every minute of it! It was a little different this year, this being the first year that Jordan has not had vacation over Christmas and New Year's, but that just made us savor every moment even more. We started out Christmas morning at our house with a few gifts, and then it was on to my mom's house for more family fun. The boys have been begging to play hockey this year, but with it being such an expensive sport to play, we just didn't see it happening. We made a deal with them that if they put all the equipment they needed on their Christmas lists, and they ended up getting it all, we would let them play. They asked for nothing else this year.... no toys... just "hockey stuff." And their family didn't dissapoint. They came through with the last piece of equipment necessary being opened just before midnight on Christmas night! Daddy even scored a hockey stick, too, so they were able to play a little street hockey before going to Grandma's house.
We headed over to Grandma's for food, fellowship... and of course, more gifts, but most importantly for time together with family celebrating the birth of our Savior. It was great to have our whole family together this year. My brother Chris, who lives in Minnesota , flew in with his girlfriend, and it was great to have them with us this year. After opening gifts, we had several hours to spend together as a family just having fun. Of course, the new toys proved to be great entertainment for all! Something as simple as a nerf football can provide hours of family fun! Isaac, Ethan, their cousin Matthew, and Daddy had fun playing football together, while I played with Ashlyn and Jessica in the leaves. Later, the three boys played a game of Star Wars Monopoly, a gift to Isaac and Ethan from my sister and her family.
We all spent much time, "ooohing" and "ahhhing" over Jordan's new hockey stick that he received from my sister and brother-in-law... An official, game used, Corey Stillman autographed hockey stick... Wow! What can I say?... they have connections! This will make a nice addition to our Hurricane-themed office at home. Jordan was quite impressed... and so were the rest of us... well, most of us anyway. The boys had a hard time understanding why they couldn't take it out in the street and play with it! Afterall, they had a bunch of new hockey gear!
We had a wonderful dinner/dessert and played some board games and wii. Then Jordan's brother came and got the boys and took them to the airport to pick up his fiance'. Jordan and I had some time with just the adults playing games and then we headed over to his parent's house to visit with them and exchange gifts. We had a great time there as well. The boys received the rest of the hockey equipment they needed (just before midnight) and we got an AMAZING framed family portrait to put over our fireplace... along with some "hockey gear" of our own.
The boys were incredibly exhausted, but didn't want to close their eyes for a second. Once they had the last piece of hockey equipment, they couldn't wait to put it all on. That, in itself, was about a 30 minute process... EACH! They were so worn out by the time they got it all ON, that they were ready to take it all OFF after about 3 minutes. We did, however, get them to face off in the kitchen so we could get some pictures :) We didn't get to stay long at Jordan's parent's house that night, being that it was almost midnight when we opened the last gift, but we spent more time with them in the days that followed. The boys went with Uncle Brandon and soon-to-be-Aunt Ashley to watch the Hurricanes practice at the Rec Zone one day, and then went ice skating with their new equipment.
It's amazing how much fun you can have FALLING on the ice when you have all those pads on! They had a great day with Brandon and Ashely and I enjoyed having another day to spend with my brother before he left town again. Jordan unfortunately had to return to work, but we got to have Christmas dinner all over again that night when he got home :) Although we were exhausted, it was all so incredibly worth it! The time spent with family, the laughs shared and the memories made are moments that will last forever. For us, Christmas proved to be a wonderful time, filled with the warmth that only comes from personally knowing the Savior who was born that day. I can think of no better way to celebrate such a holy night than with the fellowship of family and the joy of making memories that will not soon be forgotten.blessings... ~c
