The day after...

We had a simple Christmas, but we always do. We celebrate our children's birthdays in a big way. We even bring out a special "Birthday Flag" which is hung late at night the night before their birthday after they have gone to bed. On Christmas, it is not their birthday, and we celebrate with only a few presents and spend the day reflecting on Jesus' birth. We spoke with family on the telephone; my brother, a missionary Pastor in Scotland, my parents in New York State, Ken's sister in New York State and his sister in Georgia. We went to his parents home for a quiet Christmas dinner and took pictures in the afternoon outside with them since this will be our last Christmas together for a while and then of our four kids together, since we do not know when Danielle will be with us in Costa Rica at Christmas. We came home at a reasonable hour and relaxed. Today, we were up bright and early helping the kids make decisions in their bedrooms about clothes, keepsakes, etc. We have accomplished a lot today!