Merry Christmas!

Since we finalized the adoption, so many people have said "You know you'll have the best Christmas this year." Guess what - they were right! It's about 8:15PM and we've finished our bath/bedtime routine. He's in his crib and I'm listening to him through the baby monitor. He alternates between his "drilling" noise - a noise he makes when he's falling asleep - and babbling to Tigger and the mobile. He clicks and babbles and giggles and I wish I knew what he was talking about. He does eventually fall asleep and is great about sleeping through most of the nights.

He's had a great Christmas so far and we've got one more day of fun. We're going to see my folks tomorrow and after speaking to them today, I know we'll have a fun day. Unfortunately, my Mom was very sick last week with a stomach bug, so we had to change our original plan of going down today and spending the night with them. She's better and feeling up to company, so we're going there during morning nap and coming back during afternoon nap. Then some friends are passing through and coming over for dinner before heading home. They have two kids who love to play with Scott - and vice versa. It should be a great day.

We've had 3 days of playing, baking cookies, wrapping presents and generally enjoying ourselves. We've spaced out the presents - some on Christmas Eve and some this afternoon so we wouldn't overwhelm him. Last night was a bit crazy - he was fussy and didn't quite get all of the presents and attention. Dave's folks came over and we had a lovely dinner, of which Scott didn't eat much. It's all food he's typically loved - ham, mashed potatoes, green beans - but lately he's not been as interested in dinner. He ate some, but not nearly what he'd normally eat. I ended up making him some rice cereal, and he gobbled that up. He did it again tonight - once again rejecting a meal he used to love. Go figure. I'm hoping that once we get back on a regular schedule he'll get back to eating normally again. We're trying to maintain his schedule, but that's not always easy to do during the holidays.

There were some truly wonderful moments this weekend. My mother-in-law and I made cookie-press Christmas tree cookies and they turned out perfectly. The look on Scott's face when he was riding his new rocking horse. The delight on my father-in-law's face when Scott walked right into his arms and giggled. Dave telling me something really funny and Scott starting to laugh because I was laughing. Watching Scott see more new toys this afternoon and shaking his arms and gasping with excitement. Callie letting Scott chase her and even "catch" her tail a bit - and his shouts of joy when he did . Playing with both of them because the furry baby is getting a little jealous of the bald kitty. I made up a game where I trot through the house with her purple string while holding Scott. He giggles as we dart around corners and she comes racing after us to catch the toy. It requires balance, quick manuevering and strength. It's really building up my upper body strength - although it's a game I can't play for very long. He's getting heavier!

I'll admit that this Christmas has been one of the very best ever. It's not exactly what I expected in some ways. I guess I don't really know what I expected. I've just tried to enjoy each and every moment. I'm seeing Christmas through his eyes - all of the wonder and joy and that has been delightful. We gave Scott "The Polar Express" book and while he did look at the pictures with me, he's too little to enjoy the story. I took a bit this afternoon while he was napping to sit down and re-read that story and it brought tears to my eyes. If you don't know the story - a little boy is selected to take a special train to the North Pole with many other children. He gets picked to receive the first Christmas gift from Santa and he asks for one of the silver bells from the reindeers' harness. Santa gives it to him and it makes the most beautiful noise. Unfortunately, when he's back on the train, he finds out there is a hole in his pocket. The bell was lost and he was devestated. The next morning, there's an extra present under the tree - and the bell is inside. Santa left him a note saying he'd found it in his sleigh. His parents think the bell is broken because they can't hear it ringing. As people age and stop believing in Santa, they stop being able to hear the bell - except for some lucky people who never lose the ability.

For the first time in a very long time, I could really hear that bell ringing. There's a beautiful little boy who just fell asleep upstairs and he's the one who has helped me hear it once more. This Christmas has been wonderful - but I'm definitely looking forward to many more!