Merry Christmas!

Another Christmas Day is here, and it has been very merry! We celebrated with my parents, my brother Wes, my brother Bo and his girlfriend Lindley last night. We kicked off the evening with a yummy steak and shrimp dinner and then opened presents. There were lots of smiles and thank-yous. Isaac added to his Transformer and Lego collections, Anna Grace got a Little People Bus and a See and Say, Bailey got sparkly shoes and a guitar, and Olivia got a Belle costume and guitar, among many other things. I look forward to hearing the duets that Olivia and Bailey play on their guitars (move over Hannah Montanna)! It was truly a gift to be with our family for the evening!

We drove to Johnson City this morning to celebrate with Mamaw (Mark's mom). The children wanted to open presents as soon as we walked in the door, and I think that Mamaw secretly wanted to also! Afterwards, we ate lunch (the Honey Baked ham was my personal favorite) and then relaxed while the children played with their new toys. Anna Grace has been having lots of conversations with Elmo on her new Elmo phone (I have his catchy little tune playing in my head). Bailey and Olivia have been busy with their new Barbies -- Repunzel, the Swan Princess and Holiday Barbie. Isaac has already finished putting together his Neoshifter and transforming his new Transformer. They are a happy bunch of children!

Mark is heading back to Alabama tomorrow to work one day and will then drive back up Thursday night. We are celebrating Mamaw's 70th birthday on Saturday. Then we will all drive back to Madison on Sunday. What a blessing it has been to celebrate with our family. The older I get, the more I realize what a gift family really is. Merry Christmas!