Christmas

I remember as a kid being so excited for Christmas. The parents used to have to force us kids to stay in bed until 8am before opening presents. Before the big day we would count to see who had the most presents, and who had the biggest presents. One year, one of my brothers was so frustrated because there was a box with no weight or sound, it drove him nuts not being to guess what it could be (it was a piece of paper letting him know he was getting piano lessons). There was the year of plenty when we got a new family computer (in the mid 90s) and I got a new bike. Christmases have gotten smaller and smaller as we have grown. We're not as gung-ho about gifts, nor are we as excited for the holiday.
The past several years have been pretty quiet. Our big day is Christmas Eve, where we have a huge meal - it used to be a ham, now it's prime rib - and read scriptures for the Christmas story. We generally end up singing and playing games. I think that's what I like most. We gather around the piano and sing songs, and we always have a blast playing games. Unless it's Uno, and then I become bloodthirsty and only want to WIN! While I may not have appreciated it as a kid, I think spending time together is great, especially since we're all so busy with our own lives.
It was kind of nice having Christmas on a Sunday. Not only did we get to spend time together as a family, we got to spend an hour contemplating the birth of our Savior. I love singing Christmas hymns, and I miss harmonizing. With how busy things have been, I haven't wanted to stick around church too much longer than needed. Maybe next year I'll try to get into choir again. I hope everybody was able to have a wonderful Christmas, in whatever way is wonderful to them.