Far, far behind

I'm embarrassed by how far behind I have become on this blog. I started this with the hope that I would at least keep track of some of the memories my family has made, but now that I've neglected this for close to 5 months, it is time to repent and get back to work. I'm going to go ahead and back date some of the Christensen memories so I at least have something written down for my posterity.

Here it goes . . .

Christmas Eve

Merry Christmas! Here are two of Santa's elves sitting on our couch waiting for the festivities to begin. Christmas Eve 2010 was quite different than Christmas Eve 2009. For starters, this year it rained cats and dogs, which was disappointing after last years Christmas Eve snow storm. We were also trying to create wonderful Christmas memories for our children while at the same time packing and preparing for a trip to California on Christmas Day. It was definitely a busy and eventful couple of days, but ones we will treasure and remember for many years.

We spent Christmas Eve eating German food, reading Christmas stories, and reenacting the Christmas story with our children. This year was the first year we've been able to do it and it was precious. It made me remember the years I was able to reenact the nativity when I was a child. I still remember doing this with my neighborhood preschool class. I played Joseph while my good friend was Mary and her little brother was baby Jesus.

I love these kiddos!

Because we were leaving the next day for California, we decided to open mom and dad presents on Christmas Eve and then we'd only have Santa gifts to open on Christmas morning. This worked well for this year, however, I think we'll go back to our usual tradition of doing them both on Christmas morning. Here is a picture of the kids discovering their presents from the staircase. We decided to surprise them by not telling them we would be opening presents on Christmas Eve. They were absolutely thrilled!

Here is our tree prior to the presents being opened.

Andrew was delighted with this great airplane/airport set I found at Costco. I knew he would love it because it is one of his most favorite toys he plays with each week at physical therapy.

Laurel was completely surprised with her new Radio Flyer tailspin trike for big kids. With the pull of a lever, the trike will spin in a circle while in the process of moving forward. I was sad that it didn't come in my size!

Laurel's letter to Santa Claus

Laurel has been asking if she could send her letter to Santa for several days. When we woke up this morning, we decided that we had better hurry and get this letter to Santa since it is already Christmas Eve Day. I did some research and discovered that Santa Claus now has a fax number!

Here is Laurel's letter:

"Wii for Laurel Christensen and a scooter and light up Twinkle Toes shoes and please give to a poor person.

to Santa Claus"

I thought she wrote a very thoughtful letter, especially when she asked Santa to please give to a poor person. Laurel has such a tender heart. Take notice of the extra care she gave to coloring each letter a different color. She spent hours on this letter and it truly is a masterpiece.

Here is the picture she drew on the back of her letter to Santa Claus.

Just so I remember . . .

On Monday, I dragged all the kids up to Plano for Andrew's quarterly appointment with his G.I. specialist at Children's Hospital. We have been visiting Dr. Russo since Andrew's birth because of all the issues Andrew encountered from his earliest beginnings. We continue our quarterly visits with Dr. Russo because Andrew has lingering issues, especially since he was diagnosed with with Charcot Marie Tooth syndrome back in 2009. Our family holds a special place in our hearts for Dr. Russo, perhaps one of the best doctors we have ever encountered (and we've encountered quite a few over the past 10 years of our marriage). Heavenly Father has blessed this man with an amazing ability to work with children who are in a lot of pain on a daily basis. I can't begin to express how much he helped me in the beginning when I was asked to pretty much give up every food I loved so I could nurse my child in order to keep him out of pain. He was also so incredibly gentle whenever he needed to do a painful procedure on Andrew as a baby. I swear he was nearly in tears during those appointments knowing how much pain Andrew was in.

So, after stopping for a quick bite at Ikea, the kids and I headed over to the hospital. Dr. Russo started the appointment by asking Andrew and Laurel about Christmas and what they hoped to receive from Santa. He also talked to them about the real reason we celebrate Christmas, which is the birth of Jesus Christ. He then began to examine Andrew proceeded with the remainder of the appointment.

In the middle of all of this, Laurel whispered in my ear, "mom, I want to give Dr. Russo all of my money because of all he does to help Andrew." She stood there with her hands holding no more than $1.75 in change, which to her was as good as a thousand bucks. She meant what she said and would not budge. It was sweet to watch her give all that she had to the man who has helped her brother so much. Not only did it show the gratitude she has for Dr. Russo, most importantly it showed the love she has for her little brother. Laurel is very aware of Andrew and some of the problems he has had. Today she patiently joined me as we sat through three therapy appointments that Andrew attends each Wednesday (physical, occupational, and food therapy).

Dr. Russo accepted her gift with gratitude, but would only take one penny from her because, as he told her, "he has plenty of money" for his needs. He told her to give it to someone who truly needs it. Laurel was born with a giving heart, and for that I am thankful.

Pre-School Christmas Party

This time of year is so magical for children and where else to enjoy a fun celebration than at school. I was glad that I decided at the last minute to attend Andrew's pre school Christmas party. It was so fun to watch Andrew interact with his classmates and teachers. Above is a picture of Andrew's darling teacher, Mrs. Griffith. If I ever leave Dallas, I will be sad to say goodbye to DKH, the best preschool in the world. I'm sure many others will say that about their preschool, but I have to say that this school is impressive. By the way, DKH stands for "Das Kinder Haus," which in German means "house for children". Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a sucker for anything German. Of course I love this place!

Here is a picture of Andrew giving his teacher gift to Miss Stephanie, Mrs. Griffith's assistant. Both Miss Stephanie and Mrs. Griffith's are saints because they change my son's diapers while he is at school. That in and of itself deserves some sort of recognition, don't you think? If only I could get Andrew interested in potty training. Matchbox cars don't seem to be doing the trick right now . . .

This is the sweet face that greeted me when I arrived at the party. Isn't he cute?

Andrew enjoyed decorating cookies with his classmates.

Here is Andrew's entire class enjoying their cookies and snacks. This party was pretty amazing. I love these moments with my children because I know that they will be gone before I know it.

Laurel's 1st Grade Christmas Party

At the last minute, I decided to find a playdate for Andrew so I could attend Laurel's "Winter" party at school. I'm so grateful that I grew up in an era when it was still ok to call it a Christmas party, but I do understand that not everyone celebrates Christmas. That's a whole other topic that I don't want to delve in right now.

Laurel was very excited when I showed up with her little brother, Ryan, strapped to me. The party itself was lots of fun. It was obvious that many hours had been invested by several mothers to make sure that the party was a success. Above is a picture of Laurel sitting at her desk when I walked into the party. Mrs. Dixon, her teacher, was giving them instructions about the remainder of the afternoon.

Here is Laurel crafting a beautiful snowman tree ornament.

Laurel was proud of the end result. We still need to find a picture of her to place inside his tummy so we'll always remember how old she was when she made this sweet ornament.

Here is the inside of her card with a cute poem and a packet of hot chocolate mix. Is there anything better than a hand-made Christmas gifts from your own children?

Here was one of the games the children played. There were 3 groups of children who raced to see who could make the best snowman out of toilet paper, carrots, and a scarf. Our team didn't win because one of the little boys shoved the carrot in this little boys mouth a second time and hurt him. The carrot went all the way back to the back of his throat and the poor thing was in tears and a lot of pain. There is always excitement when there are 7 year old boys involved.

For the love of spaghetti . . .

Andrew's

most favorite food

is

spaghetti . . . does it show?