CHRISTMAS MORNING

This year Santa gave our family a week-long trip to Oceanside, California for Christmas. Because that was our big family present, Santa stuck to filling the children's stockings for the rest of our Christmas presents. We only took what we could fit in our stockings. I actually loaded the stockings a couple of days before we left, and we packed them all in a copy paper box. "Christmas in a box" we called it. It felt kind of funny, but I think it was mostly a hit. The girls got scarfs and make up and money and pop tarts and chocolate. The boys got ties and something, (uh-oh! I always forget!)


I thought it was cute this year how the boys actually put some thought into their gifts for others. Jared gave Ian a Spongebob cd, Kudi a badly needed wallet, Tara a necklace, Papa some earphones an ammo, and me some red mixing bowls. Ian gave Jared cash toward the laptop he is saving for, Kudi a hat, and Tara some ear rings, shared Papa's present with Jared, and got me badly needed socks. They did well.

The girls' presents were sweet, too. I got an apple timer, some red spatulas, and a wisk, and Scotty got some tools he really wanted. They threw in some treats as well. Notice the picture of us with our "memory mints" as we are getting a little forgetful.