The holiday season this year was marked by the kind of tightly wound excitement that only a 5 year old can generate. A whole month of making cookies and candy, counting the days with candy canes, visiting Santa (see below) and staring wistfully at packages under the tree--all of that build-up can make even the mellowest preschooler a bit hyper.But all of that aside...for me, the best part of Christmas was seeing my two kids together. Those of you who know our saga also know that for a long time we thought that Hayden would never be able to share Christmas traditions with a sibling. And so for me, the simplicity of peeking in at my two peacefully sleeping kids on Christmas Eve--dressed in matching jammies--well, that is the best Christmas present I could ever have.
We got some other good presents, of course. Santa brought Hayden his very own robot. I got Ben Guitar Hero World Tour (and now Hayden can "rock" on drums). Marlo got wrapping paper to eat.
On Christmas Eve, we did Secret Santas, and the kids got a lot of fun things. Highly notable was Hayden's new jokelopedia, which may possibly mean that at least a handful of his jokes will make sense. We gave the kids their matching jammies and some Christmas books on Christmas Eve. Marlo slept through some of the excitement but later, bolstered by a nap in the car, cheerfully posed with her brother before she passed out in her crib. Many of us can remember sleeping poorly the night before Christmas, straining to hear a sound from Santa and counting the minutes until 6 am when we could shake our parents awake. Hayden appears to be unaware of that particular tradition, because he also passed out in his bed. He was completely out within minutes of hearing his night-time story.
On Christmas Eve, we did Secret Santas, and the kids got a lot of fun things. Highly notable was Hayden's new jokelopedia, which may possibly mean that at least a handful of his jokes will make sense. We gave the kids their matching jammies and some Christmas books on Christmas Eve. Marlo slept through some of the excitement but later, bolstered by a nap in the car, cheerfully posed with her brother before she passed out in her crib. Many of us can remember sleeping poorly the night before Christmas, straining to hear a sound from Santa and counting the minutes until 6 am when we could shake our parents awake. Hayden appears to be unaware of that particular tradition, because he also passed out in his bed. He was completely out within minutes of hearing his night-time story.
On Christmas morning, I got up with Marlo around 7. Hayden was still asleep. Marlo decided to start Christmas morning with a bang by knocking a glass off of our kitchen island (it shattered). Hayden slept through that. He's always been my good sleeper. Once we finally woke him up, perhaps a first for a 5 year old on Christmas morning, we enjoyed Santa's loot. Hayden helped his sister open presents and Ben and I enjoyed the chaos. Marlo was thrilled by the shiny paper piling around her, the lights on the tree, and Hayden's robot (thoughtfully filled with batteries by Santa) going in circles around her. There was snow outside, hot coffee for the grown-ups, and cinnamon rolls in the oven. It doesn't get much better than that.
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