Ahh yes, it was our first Christmas together as a family. And we loved it. We had been feeling the Christmas spirit all month and loved our little home and it's cozy decorations of Christmas.
We both enjoyed shopping for each other, wrapping gifts, shopping for friends and families, making yummy holiday treats and getting giddy as time got closer.
On Christmas Eve, we had Cami, Josue, Kaleb and Rachel over for lunch. We ate really good food, juice and cookies. We took some time after eating, to all sit around and open the gifts we got from each other. It was fun, and we all got great stuff! Cam guys gave us the game Apples to Apples, which we all played together and had good laughs. I felt thankful to be with them and enjoy their sweet company. It was so nice to have some holiday time with them.
Later that night, Erwin and I finished some last minute things, and went to bed. Usually my family goes to Midnight Mass at the Episcopal Cathedral. This year none of us made it, which was sad, because we love that service and the music. It's a wonderful tradition. Maybe next year? Anyway, that night we both just couldn't sleep! We were too anxious and excited about Christmas day! We felt like little kids again. :) Morning finally came to us!! We got up, got ready for church and then ran to the living room!
We of course, wanted to remember the real reason for the season, and that is our brother and Savior, Jesus Christ. We read of the bible about His birth, discussed his life and our blessings, and then offered up a prayer of thanks and gratitude on our knees. We felt love and peace, and comfort. We love our Savior and are thankful for His life.
Afterwards, we finally got to present time. It was fun to watch Erwin and his face with every gift he got. I was sneaky! And I think he liked most of what I got him, which is a feeling of relief! He also got me some really good stuff and we had some good laughs over silly gifts.
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| My gifts! I got a jacket, cereal, movies, Itunes gift card, a car fan, scentsy candle , a Y shirt and a Hawaiian language guide. haha. It was fun opening them! |
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| Erwin got a new sweater, bathrobe, running pants, sweatshirt, new backpack for school, cereal, candy and a razor! |
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| um....this was my most surprising and interesting gift....hahahaha. I love that Erwin. :) |
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Hey, I think he likes them! :)
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Erwin and I went to church after gift opening, and enjoyed the talents of our Stake. We were combined with 2 other wards and the place was packed full. We enjoyed the beautiful music of singers, the choir, flutists, violinists, and pianists. There was also a wonderful organ solo and I loved it. I appreciate music so much and the spirit it brings. It was a lovely service.
After church, we headed over to my mom and dads house. Tradition is a yummy breakfast! We ate sticky buns (my favorite!) bacon, eggs, hot cocoa and juice. We skyped with Amy and Eric and watched them open lots of little Emmy's presents. It was so fun. She laughs, crawls and smiles so much. I missed having them around this year, but we are so grateful for modern day technology! So we still got to share some Christmas time with them.
Dad went to the jail after breakfast (that is his calling; counselor in the branch presidency at the jail. He loves it.) After he came home, we opened our gifts together and had a great time. We each went around and opened one and took turns. It was neat and fun to see the ideas of gifts this year. We had a good time with talking, eating, hanging out, and playing!
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| Robert gave mom and fancy Ipod. Here they are learning all about it! |
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| A picture of the Wrights, on Christmas day. |
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| My Aunt gave Erwin and me this Christmas ornament. I thought it looked like a ridiculously large hair clip. So I tried it on... |
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| Robert opening his gifts. |
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| Yay for peanut cans with our true, blue schools on them! |
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| We all got Philly shirts this year. Love it. |
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| Mom and dad knew we were in need of new luggage. So we were spoiled with some nice suitcases. I guess we just looked too ghetto with our old ones. :) |
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Xbox Kinect is where your body is the actual control of the system. You play all the games and dances, with just using your body. It picks up on everything you do. It was SO FUN!
We had a blast playing. Here is Rob and Erwin. |
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| We look...silly. But this is us playing a game where we were on a raft and and to jump around to get coins. It was fun. |
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yeeeess! Here is Erwin playing one of the dance games. He was good at it! We all played and danced, and some of us looked so good, and others looked so bad... *cough* *cough* *me*......hahaha. We loved it and have been back over to dance. It's a good workout!
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We decided we got too sweaty to dance and jump around in our church clothes, so we changed. We then decided to take a break and call the Wright family in Hawaii! We were gross and sweaty, but they said they didn't mind, as they projected us on a huge screen! *shame* haha. It was fun to see my in-laws and chat with them. They all look comfy and warm and shared with us their Christmas spirit. They also sang a couple of songs in Hawaiian and English, and it was quite lovely sounding. I enjoyed listening to them, and Erwin sang along with them beside me. My mom and dad also got to say Hi to them, and we had a good time chatting and seeing one another. Mele Kalikimaka! <3 <3 <3
It was a wonderful Christmas. I enjoyed it being my first with Erwin, and look forward to many more with him. We talked about traditions that we want to start together as our own little family, and what we will do with our kids, when they come along. I'm excited!
I am so thankful for my Savior. I am grateful for His abundance of love and comfort. I am indebted to Him and His atoning sacrifice, which is the greatest gift of them all. This Christmas was a wonderful one, having Christ in the foremost of our minds and keeping His spirit in our hearts. I love my Lord and my Savior. <3
Merry Christmas!
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