Unique Christmas Presents

As it was a homemade Christmas this year, all of the presents were unique and we tried to be thoughtful with them. The Dad’s received ties that were sewn together and filled with reasons why we loved them. Marc wrote the list for his Dad and I wrote the list for mine. The Mom’s were given scarfs and this was one present that wasn’t quite finished in time. I promise that one day my Mom will receive her scarf and it will be to her exact specifications :) Eric received the only store bought present and loved his chess board that could magnetically move the pieces. It makes it so that Eric can play against a computer but still use a real chess board. It is quite a nifty thing. Melissa received frames that had pictures of the two of us and said “Forever Friends, Always Sisters” in scrabble letters around the frame. G.T. received a clock inspired by a talk from the October 2011 conference. Aunt Gerry, Victoria, and Stephanie received scarfs as well. At least Aunt Gerry will receive hers when I finally finish it, another present that wasn’t quite done in time. Marc received a hollow book that had 111 reasons why I love him on playing cards. Mikkel received several wallets so that the next time he comes to visit he has several to lose without not having a wallet anymore. All of Mikkel’s wallets were made by Marc and are the inspiration for his duct tape wallets that he has sold to coworkers and online. The Kiddos received some unique versions of the game “Guess Who” and also had a unique book made in their honor. Each child had a book filled with pictures of them and them with other people in the family. They turned out really well and I was so excited to be able to give them to them after working on them for months!

Christmas was an interesting day because it fell on a Sunday. We all got up and saw what Santa had brought. Like usual, Santa had spoiled us all rotten! We then got ready for church and went to Sacrament meeting as a family. After Sacrament meeting we returned home and prepared for what would be the marathon of Christmas opening. With 15 people on Christmas it took a long time to open all of the presents but it was a fun day filled with love and cheer.

I really was so thankful for how special this Christmas was. Having Melissa and her family back for the holidays and being able to give thoughtful gifts made all the difference in the world. This will definitely be one of my favorite Christmas to look back on and I sure will be a fond memory in the future. Thank you all for making it such a wonderful experience!