'Twas the Night Before Christmas

We felt so blessed to have Grandma, Papa, Nana, Grandpa, and GG all celebrating Christmas with us at our house this year.  It meant so much to us to have this time all together as a family!

Grandma and Papa arrived a couple of days before Christmas, and on Christmas Eve morning, the boys opened their gifts from them.  Liam was thrilled to receive his first Eagles jersey! (And don't worry, IL fam-- his Bears jersey still fits too!)

Joergen was pretty excited that Grandma and Papa gave him an Eagles jersey too... but nothing compared to that 2015 Hess truck!  In a small, incredulous voice, Joergen said "Whoaaaa.  Awwwesommme!"

Which was also pretty close to Liam's expression when he opened his real Notre Dame football helmet.  I'd call that gift a touchdown!

Thank you, Grandma and Papa!

Love you!

Later that morning, Santa drove past our house on a firetruck!  I loved watching them flip up their little helmets so they could press their noses against the front door to watch.

By lunchtime on Christmas Eve, Nana, Grandpa, and GG had arrived, and it was time to decorate Christmas cookies.  This is one of my favorite holiday traditions, and it was pretty cool having 4 generations of us in the kitchen decorating cookies together.

That evening, we went as a family to Christmas Eve mass.  Fr. Cioppi had contacted us the week prior to ask if one of our boys would like to carry the baby Jesus in the procession and place him in the manger at the front of the church.  Liam and Joergen took Father's request quite seriously, and really seemed to get what an honor and responsibility this was!  I was so proud of them when, rather than argue about who would get to do it, they decided almost immediately that they would carry the baby Jesus together.

That mass was one of my most treasured memories of this Christmas.  I felt so blessed to have my in-laws, my parents, and my grandma at mass with us.  Grandpa decided to join me in singing with the choir, and from up in the loft, I felt this overwhelming sense of peace and joy as I watched Liam and Joergen process through the church, carefully sharing that baby Jesus and gently placing him in the manger to complete the Holy Family-- with Daddy, who was serving a as a Eucharistic Minister, right behind them all the way.

After mass and a lasagna feast, the boys got all snuggled up in their beds in anticipation of Santa's arrival.  I was excited for them, excited to have our families here, and I'll admit it-- excited for Santa, too!  In the middle of the night, I crept down the steps to check on GG (who was sleeping on the living room couch) and couldn't believe my eyes: