Christmas Morning Favorites

 I could probably start every paragraph in this post with "my favorite thing about Christmas morning was..."  I really just can't put one favorite over the next.  So here it is... my Christmas Morning Favorites:

My favorite thing about Christmas morning was the fact that the kids didn't even get into their stockings while waiting for mom and dad to wake up.  In Kirk's house, the kids woke up the parents for Christmas morning.  In my house, the kids checked out their stockings while waiting for mom and dad to awaken.  Apparently nobody informed our kids of either of these traditions.  So we woke up to find both Adam and Alex waiting patiently on the couch and Dylan still asleep in his bed.  We were informed, though, that the kids had diligently checked each stocking to make certain we had all made the nice list.  With each stocking full, it was apparent we had each made the cut.

 My favorite thing about Christmas morning was upping the annual Casdorph stocking tradition from a small box of name-brand sugary cereal to a full sized box.  They were fun to purchase and even more fun to eat.  As predicted, our generous children tried their own cereal on day 1 and then were more than eager to share their spoils with the family on subsequent days.  "Mom, do you want to try my cereal today?"

 My favorite thing about Christmas morning was getting to plan out Santa's adventures.  He brought them a trampoline (AWESOME!) and a note about how the Fife family had made it onto the ultra-exclusive extra-nice list this year.  Santa was fairly certain that it is because of all the things we do together, so he brought us gifts to continue to encourage us to hang out.  We got Wii games in addition to the trampoline, and a small, magical Christmas tree that - when decorated with treasured ornaments - powers up a communication portal to Santa.  Notes left on the tree will be taken to the North Pole overnight.  Best part is, I no longer have to feel bad about not allowing non-coordinating ornaments on the family mom's tree.  All those ornaments are now proudly displayed on the new tree.

 My favorite thing about Christmas morning was that Dylan's favorite present was always the one in his hand.  He loved his electronic toy cell phone.  He loved his D-Y-L-A-N wooden train.  He loved his penguin toy from Alex.  At one point, he refused to stop playing with the current toy to open subsequent presents and had to allow the other boys to continue opening presents while D just played.

 My favorite thing about Christmas morning was that the generosity of our parents and grandparents allowed us to spoil our kids rotten.  We had decided that the pricey "DreamLites" nightlight that looks like a pillow pet was just out the realm of realism this year, even though we knew how much Alex would love to have one.  Then a check arrived from my grandparents which almost precisely covered the amount of the longed-for toy.  We got to feel like the best parents in the world when Alex opened his DreamLite, and I know that moment was made possible by Great Grandma Casdorph.

 My favorite thing about Christmas morning was having three boys who are close enough in age that many of the gifts came in triplicate.  Three swords.  Three scooters.  Three boys who will have much more fun playing together than they ever could have had separately.  

My favorite thing about Christmas morning was feeling the gratitude of each of the children, and especially from Adam who has a growing sense that presents come from somewhere.  He willingly gave credit where credit was due, and that made the giving all the more fun.  In fact, this really probably was my very favorite.  This Christmas felt more like Thanksgiving!