Candlelight night...

Every year, on the Saturday night before Christmas, our family makes a special effort to get together for "Candlelight night". A celebration to honor our Savior's birth. We start with a beautiful dinner lit only by candlelight, which represents the Light of Christ. Then, we read Luke: 2 and everyone participates by dressing up and reenacting Jesus' birth. Over the years, CC has made darling costumes to wear and they keep getting better and better.

This year Lindsey was the narrator and did a beautiful job with her angelic voice.

Of course Ju-ju had to be Mary and what a perfect Mary she was.... Not only did she look the part, but she and Danny played the part so well....humble and mild. 

Even Joe got to participate by holding the flashlight on the ceiling. This is the "star" a very, very important job!

Little Hazel was a Shepherd this year. Doesn't she look darling? You could have heard a pin drop during the reenactment. It was so nice and I could tell the kids really felt the spirit.

The next item of business is the talent portion of the evening. The little kids loved singing and dancing for everyone. Marie performed Jingle bells on her recorder and then sang Silent night. It was beautiful. She is getting better and better every year. 

 Then, we open gifts.....Yippee! The kids love this part...of course!

The four girls received matching P.J's from CC. They were so excited and wanted to model for us. There is something so sweet about little girls in snugly pajamas. I could just eat them all up!

After gifts comes my favorite part..... dessert! We had a peppermint chocolate cream cake with pink peppermint ice-cream. Awe......

Lastly, we just sit around and interact with each other until we're too tired and lazy to speak. 

Try not to get confused by this hairy guy. It's just Danny, hanging out with Marie. They have a special friendship and it's really sweet.

I think this is my favorite picture of the night. Joseph and Ju could be brother and sister. They love each other so much and get along really well. Ju is due in four weeks. She looks absolutely amazing. I love them both in black!

It was great to see and visit with our "Twin Falls" cousins. We've missed them terribly, although we're lucky they visit often. Our next trip is going to be visiting the Halls, can't wait!

We love Vanessa and Max. They play, play, play with all the little ones and keep them entertained. Someday we'll be playing with their little ones.

Thank-you CC for a night to remember. We truly love being with our family and building strong bonds. loves...

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!