Christmas Joy...the build up...

when your heart is so full it could burst.

  cast of characters this christmas: 

Sister. my bestie. my diva , stylish, hilarious sister actually was with me. all the build up, the cooking, the movies, the wrapping, the shopping, the plotting, the picking of gifts, and the delighting of my girls. we did it together. and it felt so right, so sweet, so perfect. all our childhood memories, favorite dishes...we could come together and create it for my family here. 

                                                  

(a little shopping excursion that found us in a downpour with no umbrellas. we shrieked and ran until we could find a store to buy the cheapest we could find. we were literally the only people out that did not have umbrellas. )

She is so generous it is humbling. she is so childlike, she picks the best presents, and the girls were in heaven. 

 First born. She is five and the wheels are turning and she is savoring every.single.thing. She helps with the baking, and love to sing christmas songs (in three languages!!!) all the time. Her eyes sparkle as we read christmas books, watch christmas movies, and create things. Her joy and jubilation actually make all the moments actually feel so vibrant and vivid. When we show up at our favorite fancy mall, she dashes about taking in every detail. After one christmas outing she contently sighs " wow, that was more wonderful than i even thought it could be".

                                      

 Second born. this little lady got swept into the Christmas joy and brought the full glory of her little being to this season. She LOVED the grinch, and is not "tared of tanta". she played with the nativity set and thanked our building manager over and over again for decorating our foyer. ( it is pretty extravagant. ) She talked talked and talked about going to the mountains and playing in the snow and actually did. which is so much more than she did last year. She watched movies with rapture and helped decorate and bake as much as we would let her. 

Dream baby. When you have the sweetest, most adorable, friendly babe who just want to be with the action... and get some snuggles every now and then- what more can you ask for? she loves people, she adores her sisters, she laughs all the time (a deep belly laugh), she loves music. she sits for hours. She has no inclination to crawl or walk, cause she just loves watching, being kissed and being held.

  So i pass between a sister that makes me laugh all the time, lulu who is singing and creating life and imaginary scenes everywhere, fia who is excitedly anticipating every single thing we do, and kissing and snuggling my friendly laid back babe. wow. throw in a teasing,  silly dad who loves making holiday memories also.

 what good gifts the Father gives. What a season of reflecting, thanking, giving, and creating.

our winter wonderland outing to a Mall...

 yep, that is a dancer up in a glass ornament...

and an igloo with real snow in it...

and more baking shots..