Papa and Gram gave the little girls Christmas dresses. They LOVED them!!! They had both been asking for new Sunday dresses.
They also got the family a Foosball table. It has been well used. Susanna and Laney play it too. They bring over a stool to kneel on so they can see. It has been a lot of fun!
I always love to take a picture before the kids see everything. I love the glow of the tree with the stockings and presents.
And here is our traditional photo on the stairs before going around the corner to see what Santa brought. It will be sad to not have Sam in it next year, since he will be most likely off on his mission somewhere in the world serving the Lord.
We don't have cereal in our house except for on special occasions, and our home teachers from church knew this, so for their gift they gave the kids these yummy treats. (We really have the best home teachers!)
My favorite part of Christmas morning is always watching the kids give each other gifts. They draw names, so it is a surprise to find out who has you that year. They overwhelm me every year with their thoughtfulness and generosity. They also are so attentive to each others likes and wants. They are pretty amazing kids.
Sara had Laney this year and gave her a bunch of fancy Barbie clothes. This is a real treat since most of their clothes are from my childhood Barbie collection and they are way out of style and well used.
Drew got Susanna a Barbie and a car for her to drive around in.
Nate got Daniel a long wished for Nerf like bow and arrow set.
Susanna knew that Tim always has cold feet and steels other peoples slippers, so she got him a nice pair of his own.
Josh got Nate an awesome Lego ship.
Daniel got Drew some cool Legos too.
Laney got Josh a cute shirt and some new flip flops.
Tim got Sam a cool shirt and a bag of Takis (which he managed to eat just fine even though he had had his wisdom teeth pulled only 2 days before Christmas.)
Sam hadn't said anything, but he had thought he was going to get a Sonic Screwdriver (from Doctor Who) and was sweet about it but a bit sad as we finished opening the rest of the gifts. Then Tim told him to open his bag of Takis to eat a few. When he did he found the Sonic Screwdriver inside. The bag had no signs of being previously opened so he was amazed to find out Tim had made a slit on the side of the barcode, slipped in the screwdriver and then taped it shut. It was pretty awesome and Sam was really excited.
Happy silly kids with Daddy
Sammy and his Mommy
We went for a simple Christmas with the gifts and surprised the kids with a coupon for a family trip to Disneyland in February. Grandmas and Grandpa Alger and Aunt Kathy helped with funding the trip. They were elated! We are so grateful.
It was a wonderful Christmas with lots of family and snuggles. Just the way it should be.
