Christmas!

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Christmas morning finally came.  Even though we were far away, and so much of the last few weeks had not seemed very "Christmas-y," the kids were still excited for Christmas and that same Christmas magic was still there. 

They lined up on the stairs as we got ready to climb the several flights of steps up to the student lounge where we had left our stockings the night before.  William wasn't quite awake enough to pose for a picture.

Christmas Morning 2011 - Lined up on the stairs waiting to see if Santa came

They were pretty excited to see that Santa had found them all the way on the other side of the world.

William with his stocking full of presents and goodies



Kate on Christmas morning holding her new Christmas pajamas



Ben and his favorite Santa present

Sarah modeling her new sock monkey pajamas

Checking out William's new coloring book

Yep!  Santa managed to find us.  Way to go Santa!  After seeing what Santa brought, Jennifer made us a delicious breakfast.  It was super stormy outside, so we stayed in our pajamas and relaxed most of the day.  Even though it was Sunday, services are held on Saturdays there, and we had gone to church the day before.  We had thought of going to a few places that day, but with the horrible weather, it was better to stay indoors.  So we just stayed in and relaxed.  It was a nice break after the hectic pace of the last few days. 

Seth and Thomas got a new fishing game.  They were nice enough to let William play.

We had an awesome dodgeball tournament in the gym.  It probably lasted a couple of hours.  The kids had long games of tag and hide and go seek all over the Jerusalem center.  This may have been the most fun part of the trip for them--just getting a chance to relax and play with their cousins.

Christmas Dogdeball Tournament Extraordinaire

 These boys weren't competitive or anything...yah right!

Later in the day we decorated Christmas cookies and had a wonderful Christmas dinner.  Jennifer and Hannah were amazing cooks and seemed to throw food together effortlessly. 

It was a truly merry Christmas--surrounded by family we loved, and in a place that reminded us so keenly of Him whose birth we celebrate.