Merry Christmas from my house in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to yours!

This is Colbie Colbert writing.  The kids are super-excited:  they know that Santa Claus is coming in tomorrow night to bring presents to them for Christmas, so they've been trying their hardest to be good, as only three kids under the age of eight can be.  *giggle*

I know I appreciate it!  Sure makes life that much easier to handle!

Just a few months back,  I didn't know if we would even have a Christmas because Kaitlyn was so sick: she was facing major heart surgery.  It was a scary time in our lives; we didn't know whether Kaitie would even pull through.  Yet she did, and once she got through her complications during her post-operation period, she took off like gangbusters, and she continues to enjoy renewed health.  God has been very good not only to her, but to us as well.

And I am very grateful.  :)

The kids (Kaitie and Diamond, in particular) have been hopped up on sugar, so it's been fun chasing them all over  (NOT!  LOL).  Granger is very fascinated with all the Christmas lights and decorations; it's so cute to watch his little head bobbing around, his eyes wide with the wonder of it all!  It makes me think back to when the girls were his size, and it causes me to smile.

Here's a rundown on what each child is getting for Christmas:

~Kaitlyn Ashley: educational games geared for her special needs, some stuffed animals, new clothes, underwear, socks, and shoes, $100.00 (from her grampy and grammy Colbert in Lake Charles), "purties" for her hair, and a new kitty cat (a Ragdoll; we pick him up tomorrow at the local animal shelter).

~Granger:  new toys, educational games, new clothes, underwear, socks, and shoes, $100.00, and a new stroller (his old one is getting too small for his ever-growing body!). 

~Diamond:  new baseball and bat set, a new baseball mitt, a new soccer ball, dance outfits for her dance classes, new toys, educational games, $100.00, new underwear, socks, and shoes, new clothes, clips, scrunchies, and ribbons for her hair, a new kitty (a Maine Coon kitten we are picking up at the shelter tomorrow, the same one who has the Ragdoll kitten), and some movies on DVD.  (I also got movies for Kaitlyn and Granger.)

I know my credit cards have been maxed out:  they're whimpering for mercy.  LOL  I will be paying on the kids' Christmas gifts until June or July, the way things look now!  *groan*

Yet I don't mind:  I think my kids deserve to get spoiled like this; they've been very good; they deserve to get rewarded!

I do tell them about the birthday of Jesus, and about that being the main reason behind Christmas:  it isn't just about "all the presents or Santa".  There's much more to it than that.  We will bake Jesus a birthday cake and sing to him; we do that every year.  The girls have really enjoyed this tradition; now that we have a little boy, I will continue to do so.  I want him to know about Jesus, too.

Well,  I am going to go back to bed.  I was up because Granger needed a diaper change; he woke me up with his crying.  I also wanted to pop into my blog/journal and let everyone know what was up.  I will write again soon; I also wanted to wish all my friends the merriest of Christmases ever!  (For Christmas, after we open up the gifts, we are going to my mama's and have Christmas at her house, as well as lunch.  So the kids will probably get more goodies.  *oh, joy!*  LOL)  God bless you and talk to y'all soon!

~Love, your friend in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Colbie.  :)