Merry Christmas!

This Christmas Day will be spent much different than originally planned. Due to a nasty GI illness that struck my parents' house overnight, we are keeping our distance and spending instead, a quiet day at home. Santa was good to the kids again, as he is every year, and I have a lot of toys to put together! Plus, I am extremely exhausted by staying up until 2am wrapping presents again last night!

We had our annual Christmas Eve gathering last night, at which both sides of the family were present (including those who are now sickos). We had lots of good food, and a rousing game of cribbage (which somehow got way out of control and tried to take over the whole evening), and a very nice and non-stressful version of the dice game. The kids read the Christmas story by the light of the advent Christ Candle, and we followed it with a few carols.

The younger kids enjoyed running around like crazies with all of their cousins, which left us older ones to actually have some adult conversation. It was a very busy evening, but lovely all the same.

The fun part of our evening was sharing our most likely not-so-secret Secret:

Arriving in June,2009...another little baby Zajac!

Even the kids had no idea until Christmas Eve morning when I let them look through the photo books I had made for the Grandparents before wrapping them. The older kids are so relieved...the boys were certain something was terribly wrong with Mommy due to how sick I have been all fall. I also had to start Lovenox (blood thinner) injections twice a day to prevent a recurring pulmonary embolism. Now all pieces of the puzzle were fitting for my boys and they could finally relax. The little ones, of course, are excited, and most are convinced it is a girl. Our odds at growing girls are not that high, so hopefully they will not be too disappointed if it is shown to be otherwise next month.

Well, more later....I have a few more hours of toy duty to put in!