Christmas is for Kids

We started Christmas off for the kids by telling them the Christmas story using flannelgraph pieces. I hadn't really planned out the story real well, but the kids seemed to understand it well enough.

I was especially proud of 4 year old Johnny as he gave the right answers that showed he was really listening. I told them how Christmas Day was a day to remember how Jesus came to love us and we need to love and obey him. And, how we give/get presents in honor of the three wise men and their gifts to Jesus. As they get older we'll get into more details. They'll also be able to do more on the gift giving part to learn how to give as well as receive. 

After story time and a cookie, Tom and Timmy took the kids outside to light some sparklers. In our house, any holiday is a good reason to start fires.

The kids started off slowly and were a little intimidated by the sparks but by the time it got down to Henry, he was rocking out and putting on quite the show.

Jennifer stood off to the side and enjoyed her sparkler. Don't you love the little pigtails? The nannies use pipe cleaners to wrap around the hair.

The next afternoon the kids gathered in the dining room to get their gifts. We had such a nice selection of toys for the children thanks to all of you who participated in the Give Kids Their Own Space campaign. You can read how the idea got started here.

Tom passed out the presents youngest to oldest. Look at the candy canes on Henry's head.

They were a little shy--especially the younger ones, like Moriah,  who don't remember last Christmas.

These are the boxes that we were able to get for the six oldest kids. Chola is beaming with excitement.

Every child got a toy or two, a doll, a coloring book, and a pencil (the older ones also got crayons). The boys got king dolls. 

One of the best moments was when Johnny held up his doll and said, "hello, my baby!"

 I loved how Sandra was clutching both her dolls under her arm while still managing to draw in her book.

Johnny was so excited about his coloring book he wanted to do every page right then.

After playing with their toys for awhile the kids had a cookie party with milk to wrap up their afternoon.

Saturday is family visiting day so they all went down to the playground to visit with their relatives. 

It was a wonderful day and we're so grateful to all of you who helped make it extra special for the kids.