Christmas

We had a wonderful couple days of Christmas celebrations this year!  Our two ladies were almost totally recovered from illness, which was a blessing.  Audrey was so excited for all parts Christmas and probably opened more than fifty presents, as she was more than willing to help open up anyone else's presents, too!  Luckily, Kate didn't mind this year to have the additional help.

Besides being with family, my favorite part of the Christmas season is attending Christmas Eve mass in Elkader.  Seeing both girls dressed in their beautiful Christmas dresses and listening to the gorgeous music really made our Christmas perfect!  We were so grateful to have good weather and clear roads for traveling to all the family celebrations.

Santa arrived Christmas morning, which was exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time.  Even though Audrey knew she really wanted Santa to deliver presents, she was unsure at the thought of Santa entering the house while she slept.  It was cute to see how hesitant Audrey was to look around the house for presents!  Santa did a perfect job of picking out presents for the girls, though.  Audrey was given a new bike, and Kate was given a water table for playing outside.  With both girls' birthdays occurring in the late fall, Santa knew that outdoor toys aren't always received as gifts!  How smart he is. :)

Thank you to everyone for a wonderful holiday season and your generosity to the girls!  They are so lucky to have such love in their lives.

Merry Christmas!

The new bike!  Besides safety reasons, Audrey may need a helmet just to keep her hair out of her face!

Kate says, "I don't really understand all this Santa business, but I'm going to smile like I do!"