Christmas Memories

Hubby and I hosted part of our family for Christmas for the first time. With my brother- and sister-in-law and our three nephews, we had a great time celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. Here are some highlights -

We had our first Christmas tree!

Hanes was trying to stay warm by the lights as we decorated a few weeks ago. A very warm and calm scene.


Hubby was putting ornaments on the tree as Hanes "supervised." She likes bags a lot.


Our tree surrounded by Christmas gifts.


Everybody had a good time opening Christmas presents. The excitement on the children's faces was priceless. The word "awesome" kept flying in the air.

Our guests opening presents. Sorry about my hand and hubby's foot.


When our middle nephew, Alex, age 4, tore off the wrapping paper of a gift, he said "It's a box!" thinking he received a box for Christmas. We all laughed with him. :) With mommy's help, he quickly realized that there were shirts inside the box.


One of the presents our oldest nephew, David, age 7 (almost 8!), received was a card game called "Frog Juice." He had never seen the game before (neither had I) so when he read the title, he was somewhat frightened. Unfortunately, I was not quick enough to capture his expression which was a combination of uncertainty and fear. But after reading the subtitle, he realized it was a card game, not real "frog juice." This picture was taken during this moment of relief. He actually enjoyed the game.


On a side note, David was very surprised when he accidentally found out I spoke Chinese. I did not know he did not know!

From Grammy!
(Those were Hubby's hands, and if I remember correctly, David took the picture)

Throughout the day, our youngest nephew, Miguel, age 2, came running to me many times to give me hugs and later, kisses.

Seeing a baby picture on our fridge, Alex asked me the name of the baby. After I told him the name, he carefully repeated it with a somewhat serious look on his face. Two seconds later, however, he broke out his usual bright smile and asked me another question: "when are you going to have a baby in your house?" I get asked this question on a regular basis, but he officially became the youngest to do so :)

After I gave him a bath, Alex gave me a long hug and said "Merry Christmas" to me. It was a very unexpected, and very sweet moment.

David told all of us "Merry Christmas" before he went to bed.

We got to talk on the phone with other family members with whom we could not spend Christmas together due to distance.

Watch out for "flying" child!

As a bonus, weather was very nice.

My Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, came to the world as a baby to redeem us, giving us the precious gift of Himself and the way to spend eternity with Him. I am thankful to be able to celebrate His birth with loved ones.