A Happy Campbell Christmas

After a much later than intended night (Katie decided that having Santa come to our house was too scary, and she couldn't sleep!), we had a very happy Christmas morning. Travis went out to see if Santa had come at about 6:50. He went first to check the cookies and carrots he'd left on the kitchen table, and came back, almost in tears, saying that Santa Had come, but he hadn't liked the cookies Travis had carefully selected for him. Half a cookie was left. I explained that, if Santa ate lots of cookies at every house, he would explode. Once Travis thought about how He would feel if he ate a cookie at every house in our neighborhood, he felt better. Actually, I suspect that Santa made rather free with the fruitcake in the refrigerator.

After we discussed the cookies, Travis went back out the the living room, looked at what Santa had left, and was entirely ecstatic. Katie woke up (amazingly), and very quickly followed her brother to the stockings when she heard him call "Katie! There's chocolate!"

Katie was a present-opening machine this year, exclaiming in tones of wild excitement at every gift -- from Hello Kitty panties to electronic game system -- "Holy Cow! Just what I Always Wanted!!" She got quite a few books which had been favorites when they were checked out from the library, and at each one she joyously cried "Oooh! My Favorite! Now we have our Own, and we can read it and read it and read it All night long!"

Ed was very pleased with his "King of the House" name plate, much to Travis' (and my) pleasure.

We made it to the 10:00 service, which was nice (even though we didn't sing "Go Tell It on the Mountain"), and now will have a restful afternoon, with dinner at Ed's parent's house to look forward to tonight. A very happy Christmas indeed.