Only 364 days to go...

Christmas has come and gone.

We have spent the last two days together, doing all of the regular Christmas stuff.

Yesterday we baked chocolate chip cookies for Santa.

 (Big one mixing, little one adding flour.  That is what I call child labor.)

(This girl runs the mixer like a BOSS!! There is only a teensy bit of cookie dough on my walls. Hee hee. Mama's little baker.)

Last night we opened gifts with my parents.  Hoot and Bug were genuinely more excited to give Gramma and Papa the gift that they had made them than they were to open the ones that wre for them! And when they finally got into the opening of the presents, they were so happy and grateful for everything that the grandparents had brought, shrieking happily and hugging even they smallest present.  They got socks and jammies and, best of all, a TRAMPOLINE. Like a big old huge 15 footer!!  More on that after it gets assembled.  They are so excited!

When we tucked their little heads in bed last night to wait for the big guy, they took a little while to wind down and get those sugar plums dancing. 

Carly called me back up to ask me if there was a way that we could politely ask Santa to NOT look at her while she is sleeping because she didn't like the sound of that.  Privacy comes first, I guess - even before presents! I told her that I didn't think he had time to come in the berooms of sleeping kids, but that I would leave him a note.

Then not long after that, Hayden called me up to ask if Sanat was going to assemble the Lego house that she asked for himself or "does he know that that is why Legos are fun?"  Pretty sure he knows, but I promised to leave a note on her behalf as well.

LOL Where do they get this stuff?

There was LOTS of present opening to be done this morning.

They literally both cried tears of joy over some Frozen-themed underwear and a bookshelf to put Legos on in the living room, amongst other things. Either I am doing something right or I need to get them out more. ;-)

Their genuine care for each other amazes me.  They took turns opening gifts so that they could watch what their sister got and join in on how happy each gift made the other. They kept looking at us with huge happy smiles, hugging each gift and saying things like, "Just what I love!" "I have been wanting this!" "You remembered!" amongst other sweet, joyful, full-of-gratitude things.  They took the most joy in exchanging the gifts that the had picked for each other (oddly, they each bought the other a doll) and kept stopping to hug and thank each other. 

At 2 and almost 4, teaching gratitude and grace and appreciation for the smaller things is hard, but I just try to point out these perfect moments to the, to help them see the special things. It isn't about a big fancy present, it is about making someone else's heart full for a little bit. It isn't about what you received, but the joy that it put into your heart.  It is about loving the little things in life. It is about staying little as long as possible and soaking up every minute that we all have together.  It is nice to feel like they are "getting it" - and this is one of a handful of times that it has been clear to me this holiday season.  :-) These girls are truly my greatest gift. 

And they are cute and funny to boot.

And now we are home from Christmas dinner.
My house looks like the apocalypse happened. 
My girls are snug in their beds.
I am beat.

Sigh.

Christmas was amazing.

My cup runneth over.  And over and over again.

Only 364 days until we can do this again. I am already counting down the days.  That seems like forever.

But I bet that you can look at this next picture and guess what we will be spending a bunch of those 364 days doing.  ;-)