Sadly, my favorite time of year has come to and end and as I was taking down our decorations I thought about Emmy's first Christmas--it was my favorite Christmas to date.
We celebrated with my parents and sisters on December 22. We usually have our Christmas before we go to Lufkin to celebrate with our extended family. Emerson made out like a bandit! She received her very first doll from Mimi and Poppy. She wasn't so sure about it...it is in fact bigger than she is.
On Christmas Eve we loaded up Nathan's truck (it took me forever to get Emerson packed, going away for a few days requires a lot more planning than it used to) and started out on our first trip as a family of three. Emerson did awesome! She slept the whole 4 hours. We were going to stop halfway to feed and change her but decided we would drive until she woke up...turns out we made it the whole way there. She was a hungry little girl when we finally arrived.
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| Sweet girl! |
This was the first time that she had been to Lufkin so all of my cousins and other family were very excited to finally get to love on her. She was passed around all day! She didn't sleep much at all so that night was a little rough. But she did much better the rest of the time we were there.
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| Meeting Brooke and Brent for the first time. |
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| Emmy and Brooke |
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| Emmy and Mawmaw |
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| Emerson and Great Uncle Robert |
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| Hanging out with Blake |
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| Can you find Emerson in all of her gifts? |
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| Four generations! |
On Christmas Day we went to my dad's parent's house. (My Nana and Papa) We had lunch and then opened presents. One of my favorite things about Christmas is when Papa Sears reads the Christmas Story out of family Bible. I used to hate it because we used to have to wait to open presents...and my 8 year old self just could not stand it. But as I have gotten older it has quickly become one of my favorite traditions. The youngest grandchild, now great grandchild, sits on his lap while he reads. Next year Emerson will be able to sit with him and that makes my heart happy!
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| Talking with Nana |
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| She's so stinkin cute! |
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| Exhausted! |
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| Motley crew... |
The rest of the time we were in Lufkin we ate a lot of food, watched some Christmas movies, went to my cousin's basketball game, had a surprise birthday party for my mom, and just spent time with family. It was the best!
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| Hanging out with Poppy! |
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| She's discovered her tongue! |
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| At mom's surprise party! |
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| Emmy and Aaron |
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| Cousin love :) |
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| Look at that face! |
Nathan unfortunately had to come home a day before we did because he had work (we are so fortunate he was able to get some time off for Christmas--I feel spoiled when we get to see him more than two days in a row) so Emerson and I rode home with my parents. I seriously don't think we could have squeezed one more thing in my parent's suburban. That was a crowded trip!
We got back on Saturday afternoon and after a quick shower and change we headed to Nathan's parent's for Christmas with their family. Norma, Nathan's mom sent us on our traditional scavenger hunt for one of our gifts. So fun! And I beat Nathan to mine :) We had a delicious dinner and ended the night with Bill's homemade cheesecake and Home Alone.
Once all was said and done and we unloaded our loot, our living room was covered with gifts for our little girl. We are so fortunate--and thankful!
This Christmas took on a totally new meaning. I have a newfound respect for Mary giving birth to our Savior in a stable. I'm so thankful that He came to us all those years ago as a little baby who slept in a manger.
I hope that you enjoyed Christmas with your family and friends, and that you were able to give and receive a gift or two--but mostly I hope that you took some time to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas, the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
"Oh come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord"
Merry Christmas, from our family to yours!
