Murray Christmas

This year the Murray family decided we were having a white Christmas! Stephen and I got extra brave and decided to make the trip up to New Meadows (30 min past McCall) to the family Ranch. The roads were terrible, so by the time we made it to McCall the kids were starving. So we stopped at the moxie java to get some warm water to heat up bottles and feed them before continuing to the ranch. Well, they were closing in 5 minutes so we told the ladies we would just take it to go so we could feed them in the car. It was a mother and daughter working, the daughter had just driven down from Moscow to be with her family for Christmas and they were so sweet. They insisted we stay as long as we’d like. We felt bad for the inconvenience so I told Stephen to go buy us hot Chocolate and tip them well. Well they wouldn’t take any of our money, gave us free hot chocolate asked if we needed anything else and said they were blessed that we came in that night. We got the babies out of their seats to show them and they Just started hugging each other and crying and couldn’t believe how small and cute they were! It was the sweetest thing! They kept coming over to check on us and look at them. It was so sweet. They thanked us and we thanked them and wished them a very merry Christmas and were back on our way. It is a very sweet memory. It was wonderful to be so secluded with the family, I feel most times when they come to visit we don’t get very quality time since we are always coming and going. We had great chats, long naps, watch kids play in the snow with their amazing uncles making snow forts and sledding behind the 4 wheeler, watched movies, decorated sugar cookies and other goodies, loved on babies, prepared and devoured way too much food and made great memories. And even managed to get some sleep with 5 babies in the house. We are such a blessed family. Christmas eve we had a wonderful family home evening lesson on the birth of Christ and letting him into our lives, my father in law CRIED reading a very sweet story (I have never seen that before) and we sang lots of Christmas songs at the request of my sister in law Sherry! On the closing song, away in a manger, we got to the last verse saying “bless all the dear children in thy tender care” and I happened to be looking at Charlee and all of the sudden the words were taken from my mouth and replaced with uncontrollable sobs. My thoughts immediately went to the children lost this year in the shooting in Connecticut. I could not stop crying it was just too sad to think of their families on Christmas, not getting to watch them open presents or sing carols or decorate cookies for Santa. But how great to know they are in Gods tender care. I look forward to Christmas next year when we can really start making our own traditions with our own kids. Even though they will still be so little and not know what’s going on, at least they won’t sleep through it:) I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas!