Brooke and Baker woke us up at 4:00 AM and insisted that Santa had already come and we needed to get down stairs to see what he had left for them! Brooke could see the table where she left Santa's cookies and milk from the balcony and they were gone! Brea was less than thrilled to get up at that hour but that changed when she got downstairs and saw what Santa had left for her. Needless to say, mommy, daddy and Brea were headed back upstairs for a much needed nap by 7:30 AM. We spent most of the day in our pajamas installing batteries, putting together toys and picking up paper, ribbons, boxes and trash.
Even though Brea was home from China last Christmas she really didn't understand Christmas and didn't really get into it at all. This year was totally different...she was really into it! She loves singing Christmas songs, wishing everyone "Merry Kitties" and telling the Christmas story in her own simple way. She calls Mary "Momma", Joseph is "Dada" and Jesus is "Baby". She makes the sounds of the donkey when she sees Mary riding the donkey in the book and she loves to point out the animals in the stable and make their sounds as well. The thought that keeps crossing my mind is this...if Brea were still in China in an orphanage she wouldn't even know it was Christmas and she certainly wouldn't know who the baby Jesus was! Brea loves life and she lives everyday to the fullest. She fights sleep because I think she is trying to make up for lost time. She has such a wonderful sense of humor and she made us all laugh today many, many times.
Baker also gave us all many good laughs today. Santa brough him a WII and he taught us all how to use it. We had a family bowling tournament and so far Daddy is holding the championship title. I'm still not sure who enjoyed the WII more...Baker or Danny! I was so proud of Baker for taking the time to leave his own toys to play with his baby sister.
Ours ears are still ringing from Brooke's Christmas scream when she opened her gift certificate for trails rides at Dead Broke Farm. She LOVES horses and riding and really wanted to ask Santa for a horse but we have always told her that Santa doesn't bring babies or animals...if he did Brea wold have been home from China a lot sooner and there would be a herd of horses and other animals in our backyard!
Yes, this was a wonderful Christmas! To have our family of five together and healthy is the grestest gift I could have hoped for! To hear our kids laughing and playing were some of the most beautiful noises ever and to know that we live in a country where we are free to celebrate the birth of Jesus is just icing on the cake!
Thank you God for the gift of your son! Thank you for the gift of children and the joy that they bring to a home.
