I have always loved Christmas, but there’s just something about having a child at Christmas that makes it 100 times better. The wonderment. The memory making. The squeals of delight.

Oh, and Wrenn liked it too.

I made a list of things I wanted to do this Christmas and Mr. Right kindly helped me cross every last one off my list. Put Christmas lights up on the house? Check. Visit the tree in downtown Fort Worth? Check. Drive around and look at Christmas lights while drinking hot cocoa and listening to Christmas music? Check. Take Wrenn to see Santa? Check. Watch Christmas movies? Check. Do some Christmas baking? Check and check and CHECK.

It was one of those wonderful holiday seasons that was just… easy. We did all of our shopping before December so there wasn’t any stress associated with that. Everybody was healthy, if you don’t count that week that Wrenn and I caught RSV… but we were sick during a huge ice storm so we couldn’t have gone anywhere anyway – we just watched Christmas movies and did lots of cuddling.

We spent a lot of time with family. We managed to keep a pace that was fun but still allowed time to rest. We didn’t overdo.

Wrenn had no idea it was Christmas, and slept through just about all the present opening, but she loved the lights and the tree and Santa. And she looked crazy cute in her hand-me-down Christmas dresses. I’ll save more Wrenn stories for another post, but she was 5.5 months this Christmas, and I’ve decided that this is the very best age for babies. She is just so much fun – she’s suddenly very aware of her surroundings, and loves people, and constantly smiles and shrieks and makes the funniest noises. And she cuddles (oh, the cuddles).

We figured out a way to stretch Christmas into four days filled with big meals and a lot of family time. Little Wrenn was spoiled by grandparents, great grandparents, aunts, uncles, and great aunts and uncles. And of course, her mom and dad.

I spent the month being overwhelmed with thankfulness. Thankful for the gift of my Savior. Thankful for the gift of my husband and my daughter, for the extended family that traveled many miles (including two from England and one from Nigeria) to see us. Thankful for a new job for me and a booming business for Mr. Right. Thankful for a home and friends and a church we love. Life can be hard some time, but we are so, so blessed. And we know it.

To you, all of my blog friends, I hope you and yours had a wonderful Christmas and a 2014 filled with blessings and adventures.