Best. Christmas. Ever. {part 1}

I hope I am saying this for years to come, but this was truly the best Christmas season we have had and Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were no exception.  I tried to stop and take everything in through their sweet innocent eyes.  When you do that, you see magic everywhere, yet at least through Mac you also see the true meaning of Christmas. 

A week or two before Christmas Mac asked me what I was most excited about for Christmas. I said being off work and spending time with my family. He then asked his Coe who said getting presents. I asked him the same Q and he said "celebrating Jesus' birthday. Did you forget that part? It's the reason we have Christmas!" Thanks for the reminder Mac!  Sometimes in the business of wrapping presents, decorating the tree and going to parties we forget the reason we are celebrating. 

Since we stayed in town for Christmas this year, we were able to go to our own church on Christmas Eve.  The children’s director had asked me weeks earlier if Mac would be a star in the children’s service that evening.  Mac agreed but was slightly disappointed to learn he would not be flying from the rafters of the church!  Church was followed by Christmas Eve dinner at Yaya’s where the boys and Fin opened their presents from Yaya and Costie and Nana and Granddaddy.  As excited as Coe was about his gifts, he was more excited about opening a present in general.  He really didn’t care what was in the box and kept asking if he had another present to open.  Anytime someone pulled a present from the tree for Mac or Coe their faces lit up with excitement.

              

Eventually it was time to head home, so we could all be asleep before Santa arrived.  Mac spied Rudolph on the way and kept telling Daddy to drive faster so we could get home before Santa skipped our house.  The boys got out cookies, milk and celery (I forgot to buy carrots!) for Santa and his reindeer and everyone was asleep within minutes.