The Keefer Family: CHRISTMAS FUN.......

Christmas is all over and that is always so sad. I wish the Christmas excitement could last all year round!!! We headed out to Mom and Dad’s on Thursday night. We got a very late start and ended up getting in to their house about 3:30am. We unloaded and off to bed. The kids absolutely LOVE being at Granny’s house. Karli got in on Friday night so the family was all there except Steph and Cody. They did not make it out for Christmas this year which was pretty sad. My kids really seemed bothered by that but it is hard for them to understand that not every year will we all be together, it’s hard for us all to understand or at least accept. However, we are just all very blessed to have families that want to all be together. We spent the next few days resting, shopping and just spending time with everyone. It was fantastic. As I get older I seem to cherish the time we spend together more and more.

Raelynn, Granny and I spent one day shopping in Garden City, which was filled with laughter. We laugh a lot, mostly at the expensive of someone in the family but it is truly all in good fun. We got manicures, finished shopping for some last minute gifts and hit Sam’s for the outrageous amount of food we eat!!! It took us all day Sunday to recover from our shopping trip the day before. Sunday also called for full body massages our Mom gets us almost every year. There is a wonderful masseuse in Scott City that my Mom sets up massages for all of us with. She is fabulous and has become one of my favorite gifts!

Monday was Christmas Eve of course, which was filled with cooking and again lounging around. Christmas Eve is our big celebration. We start the evening with Christmas Eve Service at church and then come home to soups and snacks deliciously made to feed the entire community J. Then it is time to open gifts. This year I was most excited about Raelynn’s gift. She has wanted an iPod Touch for over a year now and has been saving her money to buy one. Terry and I deliberated a long time about whether or not to get this for her but finally decided we would after researching the parental controls. We got it a few months ago from Apple and had it engraved, Raelynn Audrey Keefer a.k.a. Sweetpea/Peanut. I always call her Sweetpea and Terry calls her Peanut. She was sooooo excited to receive it and I had it all set up after a trip to the Apple Store in Leawood where they help me get it all ready and “safe” for her. I had loaded her favorite songs and Taylor Swifts new album “Red” on it. Anyway, needless to say she loved it. What really made me melt wasn’t when she said Terry and I were the “best parent’s in the world”, or when she said thank you a thousand times, or when she hugged me for the hundredth time but it was when I was putting her to bed and she said, “Mom my favorite part of my iPod Touch is that engraving on the back. Whenever I turn it over and see that it reminds me of you and Dad.” I love that the little extras are what means the most to her. It makes everything, the cost, the extra time the research, worth every bit of it and more. Coop scored pretty well too. He got a Spiderman that shoots webs, a car that turns into a plane and a remote control helicopter that shoots discs. Terry and I set him up with an outdoor basketball and ball, which he liked as well but until we are out on the driveway playing ball, he won’t get the full affect J. Terry and I received amazing and wonderful gifts as well but still feel that our 2 kids and wonderful families are the true gift. Every year though there is still so much excitement in opening packages. If you like surprises you cannot help but love opening presents. I was once again spoiled with gifts. My sister’s and I and our spouses draw names now that our family is growing. Karli got me this year and she got all my cupcake trays and holder and spatulas and some amazing perfume. She has gotten me every year since we have been drawing and always spoils me like crazy. My Mom and Dad set me up with new pots and skillets, which I needed horribly, and a 3 in 1 slow cooker. They also gave Terry and I a ½ of beef, which translates to enough beef to last the entire year! This is an awesome gift! I also got many other wonderful things and could go on and on about my GC to Maurices and slippers and on and on. Terry also spoiled me big time by surprising me with the iPhone 5!!! I live on my phone and have wanted the iPhone 5 but knew better than to ask for it as I am hooked up well with technology. He knew though and it is awesome! It has some great features my old iPhone did not and a pink case so who can beat that. So as you can tell ……SPOILED all the way around.

Christmas Day we spent at Sherri’s. Aunt Barbara usually joins us Christmas Day but the weather kept her away. We had a wonderful Christmas Dinner and the day flew by. Now we are headed home and back to work tomorrow. It will be nice to be back to a schedule but it sure has been fun relaxing too. The next 2 days will be a little crazy as I have babysitters coming in for the kids which we have never done before but after the first of the year it will be all back to normal.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and remembers how fortunate we all are for what we have!!!