Holly Jolly Christmas

Well, we made it to Christmas Eve services at church! We had the Christmas program that the kids worked so hard on and it was great! Dagny even remembered her line and said it loud enough that people heard. It was lots of fun!

I made Swedish meatballs for dinner, just like my grandmother used to make, and they turned out quite good, if I do say so myself. Last time I made them, they weren't that good. This time, I invoked my grandma's help and she must have heard me. And the twice baked potatoes, also one of her traditions, were fabulous.

After dinner, I thought we would perhaps sit down and watch a bit of television, but my father seems to have come down with Pink Eye and Marc took him to the emergency room instead. They flushed out his eye, but since no pharmacies are open in Pipestone on Christmas Eve, they ended up driving all the way to Sioux Falls (45 minutes) for the eyedrops. That's love, when your hubby takes your father on that long of a trip. They got back around midnight. Dagny was already asleep and Santa had already come and gone, leaving the presents in the stockings.

This morning, Dagny woke up about 7:15 and was quite excited about the presents. She went in to tell Daddy that Santa had been there while I took the dog outside. And while we were outside, something got ahold of me. I don't know if it was the quiet, the peace, or what, but I ran around the yard in the snow with the dog and I loved it. We're going to go outside later as a family and play.

Dagny made out like a bandit with the presents. She got clothes, books, toys, a toddler sized chair that she can haul around, and a barbie car, which seemed to be the biggest hit of the day. Marc and I each got some clothes that were much needed and we gave each other Ipods, which was fun. Even though we both knew what we were getting, it was still a nice Christmas.

This afternoon we're working on dinner: a ham, au gratin potatoes, green beans, and Marc is making a bread pudding with bourbon. Mom is also making a fruit salad because she needs something to do. Don't get me wrong, I like fruit salad, so it will be nice. She just likes to have time in the kitchen.

Dagny isn't napping this afternoon, but I suppose that's all right. She's almost at the age where she won't nap anymore anyway.

The only thing that could make this day better would be our son. He got presents under the tree this morning, something from Santa, and a chair for himself. They're in his room, waiting for him to get here so he can open them.

We love you, honey. We'll be there soon.