Christmas morning was beautiful for me yesterday.
The older girls were the first to shout when they woke: “It’s Christmas!” We headed downstairs and chatted for a bit, then the familiar question came again and again: “Can we open our presents?” I smiled and replied, “Not yet — we’ll open them after breakfast.”
For breakfast we enjoyed the delicious chocolate bread shown above. I made it in individual rolls so everyone could easily pull out a portion and dig in. They devoured the bread alongside a fresh fruit salad and some milk.
After breakfast came the moment they had been waiting for: gift opening time. Each child’s face lit up as they unwrapped packages with their names on them.
“This is what I’ve always wanted!”
“Dad, look what I got!”
“This is so cute!”
Their joyful voices filled the room. Seeing them smile, giggle, and squeal with delight made me so happy. There’s something wonderful about opening a gift — the anticipation and the surprise when it meets or even exceeds your expectations. To me, Christ is the greatest gift of all, a special present sent from heaven.
The rest of the day was relaxed and comfortable at home: many phone calls and texts wishing “Merry Christmas,” lots of eating, exchanging a few more gifts, a visit later in the evening, and finally collapsing on the couch to watch a movie with Mr N.
We also went to church on Saturday, which felt special as we remembered the night of Christ’s birth. It was encouraging to see an increase in attendance — a reminder that many people choose to remember Christ during the season.
I want to say a big thank you to Jessica from the Jessica Hugo Inspire blog for featuring me. I was honored to share my blogging journey in her guest feature.
Friends, this is the last week of 2016 — make it a great one.
That’s what’s new with me. How about you? How did you spend Christmas, and what are your plans for the final week of the year?