Merry Christmas!

Finally, Christmas has arrived!  We went to bed with stockings stuffed, ready for a good night's sleep.

We all got up about 8, and the girls came out to see that Santa had given Lily a new full length mirror for her room, and Mia received a new X-Box (with a little help from Uncle John!).  There was also a family gift inside this Grinch bag.

Santa apparently stopped at Rocket Fizz and picked up this cute bag.  It's a grab bag, so you never know what will be inside.  The promise four drinks, their famous taffy, and several other surprise candies.  We were all surprised and pleased with all the fun goodies inside!  Santa might just make this a tradition!

Lily helped Decker open his stocking first.  He was super excited to receive a new football; he loves this toy!  He also received a red chewtoy, some bully sticks, peanut butter bite treats, and a blue gingham bow tie to make him an even more handsome boy.

The rest of us opened our stockings after this, and we all loved all the fun treats inside.  Its amazing how much fun stuff can come in small packages!

We took a quick little break to eat some Sister Schubert rolls for breakfast; we need our energy to keep opening presents!  After that, the girls opened their gifts from Randy and Georgia since we weren't able to have the big Brown family gathering to receive them then.  Lily loves her Jackie Robinson Equality shirt from Baseballism and the Chelsea Freeman designed denim jacket.  Mia was excited to receive the new authentic Braves' Nike jersey.  We're ready for next season!

Next up were gifts mailed up from Grandpops and Grandma Jan.  They had packed bags full for each of us.  We all loved the Corpus Christy baseball hats they sent each of us; they're the Hooks!  These bags were full of goodies as they are always so generous with their gift-giving.

Last up were gifts we purchased for each other.  I didn't take many pictures because I just wanted to enjoy the morning and see it for myself instead of through my camera.  That was definitely the right call.  I treasure this time with my family.  These are the only two pictures I snapped.

Ryan had ordered and shipped chocolates for me from the Captain Cook hotel where we stayed in Anchorage.  These little bit size chocolates are so delicious with lots of unique flavors.  They are also gorgeous; they look like little jewels!  This was such a fun surprise!

Both girls were excited to receive new bedding as one of their gifts this year.  Lily's is a beautiful ombre design; she received a gorgeous and soft new blanket too.  Mia loves her soft new Spiderman sheets and blue comforter; it fits right in with her Guardian of the Galaxy pictures that Bama gave her.  It seems both of these bedding sets fit our girls perfectly!

Later in the day, Granna and Papa came over to visit and see all the gifts.  Mia called Bama to talk with her for a bit.  We also got to FaceTime with Grandpops and Grandma Jan, Nick, Ali, and Brock; we wish we could have seen them this season.  It was a quiet and restful afternoon.  While we had fun opening lots of gifts this morning, we are reminded that the best gift is God's son, Jesus Christ.  We are most thankful for him and the ability to celebrate his birth.  What a wonderful Christmas we've enjoyed!