Zak and I began our Christmas journey after I took my accrued PTO, and we drove to the Porters. It's so relaxing there, just talking, watching movies, and playing games. Our schedules didn't quite align with one of the siblings and spouse, so we made a plan to visit before they moved on to the next location. Niki took me out for some last-week shopping, and we grabbed everything we needed.
Our next stop was on my Dad's side for the Hooper Family Christmas Party. I got to meet the newest addition to the family, and listen to some great performances by my very talented cousins.
We drove to my parents house to stay for a couple nights, and in the meantime got to visit Zak's brother and sister-in-law in their new place with splendid decorations. The snow began to fall, with perfect timing for a white Christmas.
On Christmas Eve we gathered with my parents and siblings to watch The Muppet Christmas Carol and to reenact the Christmas story, singing hymns along the way. This year I was Joseph and Zak was a sheep. Apparently he's been practicing his baaing for the role for quite some time. After our little program, we continued singing our favorite Christmas songs.
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| Sheep and Shepherds |
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| Angel talking to shepherds |
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| Angel appearing to Mary |
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| Narrator and Mary |
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| Our Wise Men presenting gifts |
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| Waiting for everyone to wake up while playing battleship |
We played killer bunnies, phase 10, and other games while my parents went to the 11:00 P.M. organ concert. As Zak and I don't have any kids, we're still in the role of kids on Christmas morning. We got to bed around 1:00 A.M., with the agreement that siblings would awaken us to sort and organize the presents around 5:00 or later. Mom and Dad don't arise until 7:00 A.M., so I stuck Mom's prepared breakfast meal in the oven and then went to sleep until it was time. We take turns opening presents one-at-a-time, starting with the youngest and circling around our family of ten throughout the morning. We are so spoiled.
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| The tower |
Some relatives from Mom's side of the family made a joyous appearance Christmas morning, along with sister missionaries who got to Skype for the bi-annual phone call home. We got many wonderful presents, but by far the best part for me was getting to see all of our siblings and parents, and some of our extended family to boot. What a wonderful Christmas.
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| By afternoon, the brothers were ready for a nap. |
Zak and I began our Christmas journey after I took my accrued PTO, and we drove to the Porters. It's so relaxing there, just talking, watching movies, and playing games. Our schedules didn't quite align with one of the siblings and spouse, so we made a plan to visit before they moved on to the next location. Niki took me out for some last-week shopping, and we grabbed everything we needed.
We played killer bunnies, phase 10, and other games while my parents went to the 11:00 P.M. organ concert. As Zak and I don't have any kids, we're still in the role of kids on Christmas morning. We got to bed around 1:00 A.M., with the agreement that siblings would awaken us to sort and organize the presents around 5:00 or later. Mom and Dad don't arise until 7:00 A.M., so I stuck Mom's prepared breakfast meal in the oven and then went to sleep until it was time. We take turns opening presents one-at-a-time, starting with the youngest and circling around our family of ten throughout the morning. We are so spoiled.
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