Christmas Report

The Monday evening before Christmas we had our third annual Christmas Nativity Play with our friends, the Millers. This year it was just our two families, which ended up working out quite well because it was more calm and I think the kids better understood what they were doing. Aubree played the role of Mary and it was hilarious to see her pretending to be pregnant. I rolled a blanket up to stuff her stomach and to stop it from falling out she had to keep her hands on her belly, which really added a note of realism to the scene. Bryce made his actorial debut as a shepherd. Although he looked very handsome, by the time it was his turn to participate he had pulled off his costume. All went well until Mary and Joseph both wanted to hold baby Jesus. A small tugging match ensued and even one of the visiting shepherds got involved. Ultimately, Joseph won out. Poor baby Jesus.
Our Christmas celebration was fun and quite drawn-out. When we got up Christmas morning Aubree discovered a little-girl sized bike in the living room. When we asked her who she thought it was for she shrugged and answered, "the mailman?" Uh, maybe she was still a little groggy? She jumped right in to opening the stockings. First she pulled everything out hers then "helped" the rest of us open ours. With little delay she turned to the presents. Initially she wanted to open the gifts in rapid succession. I began to worry that she wasn't giving each gift the thought and appreciation that she should and I thought we'd be done opening presents very quickly. However, she opened a magnetic ballerina doll and decided she wanted to take a break to play. We stopped and had breakfast. Then we opened another couple presents and took a break for showers. The rest of the morning continued in that slow manner until Aubree announced, "I don't want to open any more presents. Let's finish tomorrow." So, we heeded her request and finished opening the remaining gifts on Friday.
Overall it was a very enjoyable few days. Aubree seems to enjoy her new bike and loves all of her gifts. Grandma Winters gave her a new princess dress and Aubree wore it all Christmas day. Grandma Graff sent a Garden Girlz house and we started growing Aubree her very own (very little) garden. We got a lot of great new books, games, and toys and I think we've got plenty to keep us occupied for quite a while!
This was Bryce's first Christmas, and as you might expect from a nine-month old, he was more interested in the boxes and wrapping paper than the actual gifts. Aubree was more than happy to help him open and play with his gifts. More than anything, I think Bryce is enjoying having his Daddy home to play with him (Aubree and I are enjoying that as well!).
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!