'Twas the Night Before Christmas ...

And I wish I could say not a creature was stirring but obviously I am still busy at work readying things for tomorrow morning ;) I'm pretty sure I just heard Santa downstairs dropping off the last of the gifts while Steve and I got the wrapped gifts set out. Oh, I love the night before Christmas!!! It has an energy like no other night!

We spent the morning at the doctor's office again with Cougar ... his lungs are sounding good (the doctor was very positive about his progress) and he will go for a follow-up x-ray again toward the end of next week so we can see if things are REALLY cleared up. The doctor felt fairly confident that his pneumonia was gone but we thought that last week before his second x-ray! Guess we'll know more next week. Then we finished up some last minute shopping ... that I swore a few days ago was DONE, right? At least I found what I wanted - no matter how boring it may be for Steve to open tomorrow morning ;) Home for lunch, delivered a few gifts, post office stop, bank, Costco, and then home to meet my parents who arrived shortly after I returned home ... HOORAY!!! We've been so lucky to have one of our sets of parents here for Christmas almost every year since we moved here. Steve's parents came last year which was such a treat since we hadn't ever gotten to have them for Christmas and they will be arriving here again on Saturday after my parents leave. The wonderful visits from family certainly make our two weeks out of school fly by!

We spent the afternoon visiting, the kids playing "Tickle Monster" with my mom, grocery shopping, and snacking. We then got to go to the annual Christmas Eve party at the Taylor's house. They are an amazing family in our ward who have a big get-together every December 24th and for some reason have invited us ever since we moved here 5 years ago. It is always a treat ... loaded with some of the finest mexican cuisine you can imagine! Red or green tamales, carne asada, the largest tortillas I've EVER seen (seriously ... at least 18 inches diameter), beans, chips, salsa, etc., and a HUGE array of desserts. Tonight they showed Joy to the World - a video produced by the LDS Church that depicts the birth of the Savior and has a beautiful segment from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, too. Cougar found one of about three toys in the backyard - an old Tonka truck - and wouldn't let go of it! He pushed it all over their backyard ... so cute!After we came home from the Taylor's we read and discussed the Christmas story from Luke Chapter 2 in the Bible. What a wonderful way to savor the importance of the holiday where we celebrate Christ's birth. It's always so funny when we talk about it with our family because the girls are quick to remind me that we celebrate MY birthday on Christmas, too ... almost as if it was equally important. I have to teach them that while my birth was very important, Jesus' birth was important for ALL people - not just our immediate family ;) I am grateful for the opportunity to teach my children the true meaning of the holiday season and watch them "get it" a little more each year. I *LOVE* this picture of Steve and Ashton ... it isn't the best as far as quality because it is a bit blurry and the lighting is terrible but I love the image.Then it was time to open our new jammies! We have the kids open a new pair of pajamas on Christmas Eve so they will be cute for pictures the next morning ;) My mom is almost always the one to buy them and they love having comfy new PJ's to snuggle in with. This year it was flannel nightgowns and robes ... they were so excited about the robes!! After the gift opening it was out to the backyard to leave water and food for Santa's reindeer. We sprinkle it on the lawn so they know where to find us. Cookies, milk, and Premium Mint M&M's were the order of the night for Santa ... spoiled, isn't he?! Then the girls were off to their slumber party in the playroom. When I was growing up, me and my siblings (1 sister and 2 brothers) almost always slept in the same room on Christmas Eve, and now my kids do the same thing!! They love waking up together and waiting to go downstairs to see what Santa left for them. I love that it buys us a little extra time in the morning ;) We don't allow them downstairs until 8 A.M. so having each other to play with certainly helps pass that time.Well, I'm pretty sure that Christmas Magic has been sprinkled on my downstairs so I'd better get myself off to bed ... snuggled into MY new jammies that were brought for ME tonight!! Aren't they cute?!?!P.S. Thanks for all of the early well wishes for my birthday ... I appreciate all of you thinking of me (or even remembering that it's my birthday) at such a busy time of year!!!