Merry Christmas from the Caboodle and me

I love Christmas Eve! The anticipation, the baking, the cleaning, the lights, wearing lots of red: It's all so fun.
Today John and the children went out for the last few menu items, plus a few things I was not allowed to know about. This is the first year that we have taken the boys to do their own Christmas shopping with their own money. On Monday night, we completed almost all of their shopping at Rite Aid (a drugstore). It was so awesome. Theo is giving his brothers each a can of Pringles potato chips. He got a chocolate bar for John (don't worry, John won't read this before tomorrow!). It was really fun to help them choose gifts, and also to help them wrap all their goodies - choosing the right paper for the recipient, choosing a ribbon, card or sticky gift label?

I'm in the middle of preparing cinnamon rolls for tomorrow morning, and our traditional Christmas Eve meal of albondigas (Mexican meatball soup), ensalada de Noche Buena and sopapillas (kind of like fried dough).

Church is at 6:30, Lessons and Carols. This year Walter will be one of the readers.

I've been listening to what I think is my favorite Christmas carol, "All my heart this night rejoices". We sang it in college, but I've rarely heart it sung since then. I didn't even have it on any of our Christmas CDs, so I bought it on iTunes this year.

I'll leave you with its lyric. Merry Christmas! May you enjoy the wonder of God's condescension to us, Emmanuel, God with us!

All my heart this night rejoices as I hear,
far and near, sweetest angel voices.
"Christ is born!" their choirs are singing
Til the air everywhere now with joy is ringing.

Hark! A voice from yonder manger
Soft and sweet doth entreat, "Flee from woe and danger.
Brethren, come from all doth grieve you.
You are freed; all you need I will surely give you."

Come, then let us hasten yonder.
Here let all, great and small, kneel in awe and wonder.
Love Him who with love is yearning.
Hail the star that from far bright with love is burning!

Thee, dear Lord, with heed I'll cherish,
Live to Thee, and with Thee, dying shall not perish;
But shall dwell with Thee forever
Far on high in the joy that shall alter never.