Christmas Eve

"Hey, I'm Rudolph!"

Cary and Ellen check the cookies in the oven.

Nathaniel helps choose the best cookie cutter for the job.

Michael Benton and Michael Ellis stay out of the kitchen.

Trey volunteers for a little baby wrangling.

There are always so many things to wrap up on Christmas Eve (pun intended!). It took major back and forth phone calls and runs up the road, but we finally managed to get enough people together, cookies baked and icing made to decorate Christmas cookies. I don't have any pictures of the finished products because almost as soon as they were iced, they were eaten! Mostly, it was women and children in the kitchen and guys in the living room; they only ventured in to snatch a cookie or two.

Of course, as soon as the cookie mess was cleaned up, it was time to clean people and get ready for the Christmas Eve service at Grace Church. I can't tell you how many carloads we were (lots!), but many of us were even early. We didn't manage to get any family pictures before church, and in fact, Jason went in early with the boys and Emma to get the nursery set up. I was on my way with Mike, Will and Cary when I received a call from Emma that Patrick had had a MAJOR blowout--all over everything. Yes, even the much-discussed matching Christmas outfit, that I hadn't even gotten to see him in.

My diaper bag is pretty well-stocked, but even it couldn't handle this emergency. As soon as we got to the nursery, Jason and I turned around and went back to Mom and Dad's for more supplies. Unbelievably, we made it back to church by the beginning of the service! It was beautiful, and so wonderful to see all our friends from Louisiana again.

Afterward, we walked over to Virginia, home of Dr. Sammy and Ms. Nancy Vinci, who have hosted the Christmas Eve party for as long as I can remember. Fortified by a cup of delicious gumbo, some yummy crab dip, and lots of little desserts, we enjoyed the festive party. Dad was holding court in the corner chair by the fire, and it took a napkin-full of chicken wings to lure him away to go home. He didn't realize his fortunes were tied to the car with children up past their bedtime!

Back at Foxfield, all the children were snug in their beds, and the grown-ups were settling their nightcaps into their hands... Well, at least the fellows putting a certain racetrack together were enjoying their nightcaps. The rest of us had warm cocoa, as we all laughed at the directionless assemblers. Of course, we stayed up way too late, and had to scurry into bed so Santa could visit us.