And they said it couldn't be done!

Having done it for for the first time in recent memory, I can now say that while staying in Seattle for Christmas has the definite downside of not being able to celebrate with family, there are a few benefits. For instance, we loved spending a quiet Christmas eve at home reading Christmas stories by the fire. This year's favorite was Jan Brett's version of The Night Before Christmas (the illustrations are so lush and detailed...we poured over each page commenting on the tiny details). Polar Express also topped the list.

Another plus: being able to put cookies and carrots on our family Santa plate without having had to stress out about packing and transporting said plate across the country to our Christmas destination. We've always taken it with us, carefully quadruple bubble wrapped and carried like a newborn baby through airports and turbulence. We love that plate and this is the first year I have not had to freak out about potential breakage en route. Mama not freaking out is a special holiday gift for everyone.

Being fully immersed in our faith through both school and church has brought focus on the true meaning of Christmas and our family enjoyed the advent season as a time of waiting, preparation and joy. Julia and I enjoyed daily prayer at school, which we both agreed was a lovely way to await the coming of Christmas. We also cherished the Christmas programs held at both girls' schools.

Then there was our new advent calendar. In terms of Christmas stuff, next to the plate I think I love the advent calendar most. We got it this year after much searching, sweating and good fortune (I found it last year at Restoration Hardware but they had sold out. This year I called early to see if it was being sold again to learn they did not do another production run but, hey, it turns out someone returned one in March and it was available for purchase...!!!). I filled each of its little compartments with tiny treats for the girls and got to experience the daily joy of watching them run to the calendar to see what surprise awaited them. I know it's not really about the gifts. Just sometimes:)

This was the year Julia really began question the reality of Santa. We've never really lied to her...we told her all about St. Nicholas and his good deeds from long ago. We also said we believe St. Nick's spirit lives on and that is what "Santa" is. She took that as an affirmative, though she still sought some empirical evidence. As we were setting out the beloved plate, she realized she was staring at proof positive itself. She announced, "I know how we can tell if Santa is real! If we wake up and the cookies and carrots have been eaten, we will know Santa came!" Mark and I made a quick pact to check each other for telltale crumbs on our jammies that night. Sure enough, the treats were gone the next day and another official believer is still on the books.

Christmas Eve was beautiful in its peaceful simplicity. Christmas day was a miracle for being a continuation of the same. We woke up, watched Julia inspect the cookie plate like it was a CSI crime scene, noted the piles of wrapped packages, looked through our stockings, and calmly sat down to breakfast. Yep, calmly sat down and ate. With piles of packages not 20 feet away. Unopened. Then, we got dressed, walked right past those still unwrapped gifts, and went to church. We came home over an hour and a half later, had a nice warm beverage then talked about opening gifts. It was about 11:00. Here's the backstory...I was talking to a lovely, spiritual woman at Church a few weeks ago and asked if she would be attending mass on Christmas Eve or Christmas day. She explained that her family always attended on Christmas morning, went home to phone family far and near and wish them Merry Christmas, then opened gifts. Priorities, she explained: Jesus, family, gifts. What a concept! I mentioned this at a grown up party I attended and people actually snorted wine out their noses. HOW ON EARTH DOES SHE KEEP THOSE KIDS AWAY FROM THE GIFTS?? Preposterous! It's cruel! and so on and so forth. I liked the idea but wasn't planning on imitating her until I added up the time required to get us through the morning. Hmmm...mass was scheduled at 9:00. My kids usually woke up at 7:30. Getting them dressed, fed, and then opening the many gifts from grandparents who don't keep to the one-present-per-child edict, and we were looking at noon. Since we couldn't eliminate dressing (we have already established a no-nakey-baby-at-church policy) and eating (heaven help us if we tried), opening gifts had to go. Here's the kicker...when I explained to the girls that this was Jesus' birthday so we should go to church first and then open presents, they nodded like this was the most common sense idea they had ever heard and, of course, is just how it should be done. And so it was.

And they said it couldn't be done!

Here are some pictures of the special plate (made by the four of us at a painting place with our very own thumbprints!) and the new advent calendar. Also, and more importantly, a few shots from our Santa breakfast with friends, the holiday carousel ride in downtown Seattle, and Christmas day itself.