Christmas Eve with the Grandkids

At church tonight, the pastor opened up the microphone for individuals to share a memorable Christmas memory.  Our 4-year-old granddaughter, one who usually attends another church and so is not familiar with our pastor or the surroundings, marched right up front and took the microphone.  “Jesus died for our sins,” she said clearly.  And then, looking at the pastor, she added, “That was awfully loud!”  Too cute.

At one point I took our special needs grandson, age six, out of the sanctuary into the narthex.  He was in a squirmy, squealing mood tonight – happy, but noisy and interruptive.  People were so sweet after the service, and stopped to greet him or make comment about how he didn’t bother them at all, but rather how he exemplified the needy - those Jesus targeted as objects of his, and our, love.

We returned to our kids’ house after church for an elaborate hors d’oeuvres meal by the fireplace.  About every hour, our eight-year-old grandson and his two little sisters (four and two) checked the computer.  As I looked over their shoulders, we jointly watched Santa move on a map of the world, following the time zones, until….gasp….he was due HERE! 

The kids hurried off to their bedrooms knowing BED was the prerequisite to Santa’s visit.  But the eight-year-old also kept the adults accountable on his way up the stairs. “You guys need to go to bed NOW!”  Either he was putting on a good show for the younger siblings, or else on some level he still believes.  Either way, it was fun.