Merry Christmas 2010....Christmas Eve

We went to a Christmas Eve service and took all 3 boys with us...this year was a little more difficult with 3 mobile kiddos.  I'm one for keeping my 3 boys with me at the Christmas Eve service and not putting them in nursery, so we try to attend services that are for children or services that are kid friendly.

Every year we've gone somewhere different.... this year was our first year at the church that we've been visiting.  It was a great service with lots of singing and meaningful messages.  Unfortunately, our children were a tad bit too excited for sitting and listening to a guy talk.  All the boys did excellent through the singing of hymns.  The big boys sang the songs and enjoyed the music and lights!  As soon as the singing was over, my children went crazy.  Bubbie was lying over the chairs.  Peanut was racing back and forth over the chairs.  Buggy was getting a tad bit too loud, so Hubbie had to take him to roam the grassy parts of the parking lot.  Needless to say, it was chaotic!  Peanut and Bubbie were very concerned about the lighting of the candles (which happens at the END of service!) and they ended up messing with the candles and the protective paper so much that Peanut got burnt by the hot wax and almost caught the piece of protective paper on fire!  The service was a little longer that we anticipated it to be and we rushed out of there are SOON as it was over!

We're already thinking about changing our tradition for next year.... we've been going to a Christmas Eve service every year that Hubbie and I have been together.  I think we've only missed one and it was the Christmas that we welcomed Peanut into the world (born 6 days before Christmas)..... but now, with a new baby on the way and having to wrangle the 3 boys PLUS a 3 mo old during a Christmas Eve service...... we may have to change it up for a few years!

After service, we rushed home and we prepped all our holiday goodies.  This is the 3rd year we've done "appetizer" and munchie dinner on Christmas Eve while watching a Holiday movie!  The kids love it and so does Hubbie!  We get all the goodies that we try not to eat the rest of the year....like mozzarella sticks and queso dip with chips!  Its all so yummy and fattening!  Of course, we finished the fattening dinner off with some good Christmas cookies!  Afterwards, we get in our PJs, talk about the meaning of Christmas and what we are celebrating and then read "Twas the Night Before Christmas"....... 

We put the kids to bed rather early (7ish) which is our normal bed time, because they were bouncing off the walls!  They went to bed pretty quickly and Hubbie and I set to work.  Cleaning the house, prepping for Christmas Day and wrapping and setting up of gifts!  The wrapping and setting up of gifts took MUCH longer than I would have liked.... and sadly, we went very simple on Christmas this year and didn't spend that much but I felt so materialistic lugging all the gifts from our closet to the tree.... materialistic and dirty!  I know toys and goodies aren't bad...and we've tried put the focus on Christ's birth and His purpose on earth but I was overwhelmed and convicted with the amount of STUFF we have and use and "need" and I just wished we could somehow not want as much!  Anyway...... All in all, it was a good night and we were thankful to be asleep before midnight!  

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!