Christmas Gifts

I absolutely love what my in-law's do for their grandchildren's Christmas gifts!  They give each child a gift certificate for a date with their Nanny and Papa!  Kids get enough toys and STUFF these days!  By the time they get toys from Santa, their parents, their siblings, and other family, they have enough!  For their date my kids get their grandparents' undivided attention for that afternoon or evening.  What a blessing for my children to have grandparents that value the relationship with each grandchild!  And with 15 grandchildren living close by, it's quite a scheduling feet for them to accomplish this yearly.  This year Jacob got to choose his date and went to dinner and a rodeo with Nanny and Papa!  He's been talking about that rodeo for months now, and will continue to for many months to come.  I hope Nanny and Papa are geared up for another rodeo next year :)!

Jonah got to go to the zoo!  I don't know how much he got out of it this year, but I still appreciate the effort that Nanny and Papa made to spend time with him!

And Sarah got to go to dinner and the circus!  Here's a picture of Sarah with Nanny and Papa after the circus.  She even got to choose a toy, and chose this circus horse to remember the occasion with.  She loves that horse and plays with it often.  But most important, she still talks about the circus and the wonderful time she had being loved by her grandparents!

I'm so grateful to have grandparents close by to my children that realized the importance of these family relationships.  My own parents live far away, and they have their own traditions for maintaining relationships with their grandchildren.  What a blessing it is for my children to know there are so many people that love them.  After all, relationships, family and friends are a big part of what this life is all about!