this morning my family loved each other. in that overt laughing smiling way. i wish it didn't take hundreds of dollars of gifts to make that happen, but nonetheless it was beautiful. christmas presents are an institution in my house. i don't think i can fully explain to you just how much my mother in particular spoils all of us on december twenty-fifth, and since i don't want to bore you with a detailed list of my presents, i won't even try.

the best part? it's a toss-up between eating blueberry pancakes for breakfast and lara crying over my handmade card. another thing i can't explain is how much of a blessing that fourteen-year-old is to me. she is everything. she is stunning. she understands what christmas is truly about and she loves jesus for it.

tomorrow morning i'm going away for a couple of days with my family, and then afterward away for two days with the boy's family. there's packing to do and new cds to listen to and beaches to lie on and books to read and a boyfriend to be missed (until thursday anyway).

merry christmas, kids.