We had such a wonderful Christmas this year! Grandma and Grandpa Young joined us for a busy and fun-filled holiday.
Grandma Suzi came into town on Tuesday afternoon. We put her to work right away! We went and worked at the Amazon warehouse where we gift wrapped packages being sent out around the country. This was all done to raise money for Sam’s (Stephanie’s oldest son) cheer team to go to a national competition. We were able to raise the $600 he needed, plus some! We had a lot of fun. When we got home we had to bang on the doors and windows for about 20 minutes just to wake Sam up to open the door and let us in.
On Wednesday evening we went caroling as a ward activity to different families in the ward that were part-member or less active. Tori slept the whole time (thank goodness, she had had a ROUGH day). It was fun to be grouped up with other families in the ward that we don’t usually spend time with and to be doing something meaningful during such an important part of the year.
Stan got into town on Thursday. On Friday morning we all met up at the girl’s school to listen to their musical programs. They were very cute and we were so impressed with how well they had memorized the lyrics and choreography!
Friday night Stan and Suzi took Todd and Jessi out for dinner at P.F. Chang’s to celebrate Todd’s recent finishing of his Master’s Program. It was a lot fun. We all ate too much, of course, but couldn’t have had a more wonderful time.
Saturday morning (Christmas Eve) we went caroling in the halls of an old folks home in Glendale. This is our second year doing this with the Ely family. I’m so glad we have started doing this. It is such a meaningful thing. All of the Ely’s share such a passion for music and to be able to use that to lift up others and help them to feel loved and remembered during Christmas…. It is just too wonderful. I hope we continue this tradition for years to come, whether we live here in Phoenix or not, I want my girls to grow up with this special tradition.
After caroling, we headed over to Gram and Papa Ely’s for Puff Oven Pancakes and a brunch potluck. We did the cousin/sibling gift exchange and a fast-paced white elephant game with the adults. Of course, no Family Christmas Gathering would be complete without a nativity scene, so we got out Gram’s costumes and made it happen….
After a long afternoon we headed home and started getting ready for Christmas morning. Suzi stayed as late as Stan could handle, helping us wrap presents and help get everything ready for Santa!
The girls slept in until after 7:00! We all got ready for church in Mom and Dad’s room – No Peeking!!! After we were dressed and ready for breakfast, we let the girls come out and see the tree and gifts, but no touching until after church! The girls were excellent (except Little Tori, who kept inspecting any present she could get her hands on)!
After church, we tried to get a few family photos… got some cute shots, but nothing that we will be hanging on the wall as this year’s “official family photo”.
And on to the presents….
We open them one by one and watch and enjoy everything together… yes this takes forever, but it is a fun forever that is bonding and memory making!
We had a wonderful Christmas. We are so blessed to have family with us. Parents/Grandparents that get our girls such generous gifts and we are especially grateful for our very own Santa. We had someone anonymously give us a wonderful gift. The girls were able to get the thing they had wanted most because of someone’s kindness and love. We wish we could tell them that not only did they provide a fun and meaningful gift to the girls, but they touched our hearts, humbled us, and helped us feel the spirit of Christ-mas in a unique and special way that we may never experience again. We are excited to pay it forward this coming year!!
