Decorating the Tree:
As we pulled out our ornament bins this year, I worried about the poor combination of small hands and glass globes. My fears weren’t needless (shards of pink glass graced our tiled floor before the day was done), but the general decorating experience was actually pretty wonderful.
Under our direction, Bridgette eagerly plucked ornaments from our bins and carried them to the tree. Some she shoved into the low branches, but most she offered up to her dad. “Up high. Up high!” she directed. We loved it.
Though we frequently reminded Bridgette to touch the ornaments with just “one finger,” we lost a few more before the season was done. They were just too tempting. Still, I discovered that the joy of watching Bridgette appreciate the beauty of them, far outweighed any angst at losing them.
Treats, Treats, and More Treats:
We seriously live in the most cooking crazy or just plain generous neighborhood. I came home one night from work and found four different sets of goodies on our front porch. I started keeping a list (for future thank you notes – should I be industrious enough to be that polite), and it quickly hit the double digits. Thank you one and all for all the scrumptious stuff – but quite frankly I’m just feeling guilty about all the people I didn’t get around to making deliveries to.
Candy:
Ever since the gingerbread houses – Bridgette has been gaga for “handy!” That’s candy without the “k” sound. Pictured here - she stole and stashed all the Hershey Kisses that I had out to stuff in the gift bags for my office staff.
The Office Party:
I can’t remember a more fun office party! After the perfunctory lunch and passing out of gifts (Flip video cameras which were mighty cool but still not the highlight), the staff was instructed to open a large envelope marked: Santa’s Helpers. Inside, a letter informed the staff that Santa had been in a collision (the Easter Bunny had failed to yield the right of way), and because Santa was so busy dealing with the property damage issues, the Tobler Team was being called upon to help get Christmas gifts. With a fistful of money and a time limit, the staff rushed off to shop. They returned to our office with hordes of toys, which ultimately were delivered to kids in need.
The Nativity:
Bridgette simply refused to participate in the live Tobler nativity this year. That’s ok. I figure there will be plenty of Christmas’s to come where she’ll fight with her plethora of female cousins for the opportunity to be an Angel or the coveted Mary. So, as long as she was content as an audience member – so was I.
It was classic fun this year. Little Lorin – a happy shepherd if there ever was one - danced joyously in front of the manger scene. We all could only marvel at Mary’s/Caroline’s ability to keep a straight face as she sang her lullaby to Baby Jesus aka Landon.
The Presents:
We thought we would have until Bridgette was older before we’d have to get up at the crack of dawn to see what Santa brought. Unfortunately, Bridgette was up with a horrible ear ache all of Christmas Eve. So finally at 5:00 a.m. we wandered down to the family room. Fortunately, Santa had brought many distractions for Bridgette’s pain.
Bridgette loved her “push” toys this year. The buggy from Santa and the stroller from Grandma have already seen many miles. Other big hits were the plasma cars (gifts to the uncles that the toddlers immediately took over), the penguin-on-a-stick (an homage to watching March of the Penguins with Grandma and Grandpa Hanson), and the individual suitcases. Lorin was heard asking Ellison, “Will you play suitcase with me?”
The only gift that actually brought tears of joy though was one to Grandma and Grandpa. Marc and Karen put together a picture book of my parent’s early years. It was beautiful. And hopefully each family will get a copy in the future to pass down to posterity. (Side note – the parents were quite the stylish hotties in their day)
Landon’s Blessing/Bridgette’s Christmas Dress:
The Sunday after Christmas, Nicholas blessed little Landon. My favorite part was the blessing of a joyful heart. I think Landon has also got a lot of missionary work in his future.
We used the occasion to dress Bridgette up in her Christmas dress – which she hadn’t gotten to previously wear for a hodgepodge of reasons. Thus, we finally got a pretty Christmas picture in front of Grandma’s red and gold tree.
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