MERRY CHRISTMAS!

It has been so fun to be home for the Christmas break. I love the holiday season. I have found much joy in being with family and friends. On Monday Dec. 21 we had Andersen Family Christmas Party #2. We celebrated on Thanksgiving while Katie and Eric were here but Holly's family wasn't able to come so we just had another party. Santa made a special visit, we had a program, sang, ate great food, and went caroling! One of my favorite memories of Christmas growing up is when we would invite the neighbors over and we would all pile into the back of suburbans and go caroling. It is a little different now that we can just walk around the neighborhood but I still love it!

Favorite Christmas tradition #2...going to Grandma Robert's house for Christmas Eve and then driving around to see Christmas lights before going home to wait for Santa to come. This year we went and visited Grandma in the afternoon and then went out to Greg and Gwen's for the evening. Wyatt and Lydia love grandma's rocking horse.It was fun to be with Greg's family for Christmas Eve. We had a great dinner and then Lydia sang for us, we acted out the nativity, and we sang with candles (a Christensen tradition that Katie and Eric have shared with us). We played a few games of "don't eat Pete" and Lydia and I played dominos. By then it was time for magic coco to help the kids sleep through the night. It kicked in pretty fast! As soon as Lydia finished her coco she was so sleepy she could hardly stand up on her own :) Now that is what I call MAGIC! Christmas Morning...
In the past 21 years that I have experienced Christmas I believe that this is the quietest Christmas morning I have ever experienced! This was the first time that it was just Joelle and I with our parents. There was no rush and we did all we could to drag out the unwrapping. It was kind of fun to only have to share the spotlight with one other person ;) Greg and Gwen came over for lunch and we spent the afternoon playing games, just as every Christmas day should be spent!