Christmas Eve

 My family gathered on Christmas Eve to celebrate Christmas. Christmas is much more relaxed with older children! The children were talking and playing and eventually they decided it was time to open presents. Christmas is much more relaxed with older children!

Lydia had a present for each of her cousins. She was so excited to give her gifts--it was the sweetest. The boys got key chains that said, "when you forget that you are awesome, this is your reminder" and the girls got key chains that said, "Not sisters by blood, but sisters by heart."

Grandma and Grandad with the grandchildren.

Isaiah was the last grandchild to open his gift from Grandma and Grandad (they opened oldest to youngest this time) and he was the one who stopped to read his card out loud.

Mom finished the cross stitch quilt blocks that Linda started in high school. She added butterfly buttons. Linda was surprised! She didn't even know that the quilt blocks were still at Mom's house.

Mom was pretty surprised by a book by her current favorite author, Charles Martin. (I was equally surprised when I was in Barnes and Noble and saw the book on the shelf and was pretty sure it was one she hadn't read.)

I gave Dad this piece that one of his cousins made. It was a cousin on his Dad's side of the family and this was the first Christmas that Dad had Christmas without his Dad.

Grandma and Grandad got to do a video call with Sean. Sean said he will give them "the biggest Christmas hug ever" when he sees them. So sweet.

We had the traditional pizza, shrimp, crab dip and cookies for supper.
Christmas Eve wasn't quite over when we got home. Isaiah reached his goal of saving for a Nintendo Switch between his Christmas gift from Grandma and Grandad and the $5 Janell handed to him. That night he bought the Switch from his Mom and Dad. 

Isaiah and I had agreed that Jeremy and I would buy it so that when he had the money, he could get have the Switch right away--not have to wait for stores to be open.

Isaiah was pretty proud that he had saved that much money over the last almost 2 years. His Dad helped him get it all set up and then, of course, he had to play the Pokemon game that Uncle Joel gave him for his birthday in October. (Don't worry...Isaiah asked for that game in October in preparation for getting the Switch.)

All 4 of the the kids have successfully saved for a switch. The girls have the Lite and the boys have the full size. 

I don't remember if it actually was, but it seemed like it was very late when we made it to bed!