Christmas!!!

This lovely Christmas day was full of warmth, laughter and snow! Although about 3/4 of our family was missing, we managed to stir up excitement although a tear or two tried to make it's way out at the thought of how much we missed everyone. Traditions can send your mind into chaos when change comes. We become so used to certain people surrounding us and certain things being done a certain way to make it Christmas.

I expected a room full of men playing Xbox or watching movies as the woman attended to the cooking, laughing and keeping order with the littlest ones. Then prayer followed by pushing and shoving to get to the next dish and finding a place to sit, cause no dinner table on earth could fit us all together. Then the waiting...waiting....waiting..... and asking constantly "is it time yet?" from the kids. Until midnight when we all gather by the tree to open up our presents. I miss all the oooo's and aaaaw's and the priceless expressions on the children's faces when they see what they got.

The waking up the next morning and driving to Mexico and breathing in the smell of burning brick down the highway and finally getting to my Grandma's house where our uncles are already visiting. The hugging and kissing and wishing Merry Christmas and then all the cooking. Tamales, carnitas, tortillas, buñuelos, coffee, champurado, everyone would always gather in my Grandmas kitchen no matter how tiny it is, haha. The fire outside that always brought into the house the smell of smoke (love it!) and every kid covered in dirt from head to toe from all the playing! Leaving Grandma's really late at night to get stuck at the border for about 2-3 hours to get into the U.S. Can't forget the Mexican candy we always bought in bulk! hahahaha.

Well despite this missing in our lives this year, we did have a whole new experience. We had a white Christmas and a big warm meal and lots of presents (thank the Lord) and met a whole new bunch of people who invited us into their homes and lives. We got to play Monopoly to kill time before midnight (when we get to open presents) and the next day, Christmas, I walked outside with my sister's and played in more than three feet of snow! Some parts it snowed up to our waist. We got to tackle each other and throw snowballs and roll around in the snow! Unforgettable. God is so good to us, I mean He really is. All our friends are in AZ, but here we at least have each other to pick on. It was a beautiful Christmas, and placing all the traditions aside, we never put aside the fact that our Savior was born to this world and brought our redemption on this special day where so much happens. I thank God I was born into a family who taught me to appreciate this. I hope everyone had a blessed Christmas.

Monopoly....

Snow fighting!!!