Heart Full of Hope: Christmas Whirlwind

Santa came!

Christmas this year was amazing. And exhausting. I'm so thankful that we got the opportunity to visit so much of our family and see Rowan experience Christmas this year. He was such a trooper on the long travel to and from MN. Just like us, he got sick and tired of being in the car, but his mental breakdowns only lasted a little bit when compared to the hours he spent in the car. Our biggest struggle those days in MN was sleeping at night. Rowan, Ian, and I were all in the same room. Only problem is that's a real rare occurrence for us...and Rowan didn't like it all that much. Rowan didn't sleep that well while in MN, which means we didn't sleep that well. We survived, but we were all relieved and happy to get back to our house and in our own beds. Santa came and brought Rowan some awesome goods he'll enjoy time and time again.

Sledding rules!

While in MN, Rowan got to have his first experience with snow. He absolutely loved sledding in the 3+ feet of snow we had at my Nana's house. He definitely did not like sitting in the snow, but sledding was awesome. He got mad when we took him out of his sled to adjust his sitting posture or to go inside. Too bad he didn't understand at the time that staying outside-in 10 degree weather, even when bundled up for too long isn't a good idea for a little boy. Oh well. Chalk it up to another traumatizing experience we put our son through and fodder for his therapy sessions later in life.

The start of Vesper Family Christmas

After we got back to NE, we got to have a second Christmas with Ian's side of the family. We enjoyed the time in Lincoln with all of Ian's family. Traveling back and forth between Lincoln and Omaha had it's own set of challenges, but we all got to sleep in our own beds and Rowan and mostly normal bed times.

Christmas Eve

Despite the lack of sleep and miles in the car, I wouldn't change anything about Christmas this year. Rowan was spoiled by his family and has all sorts of new toys and books to play with. We got to make some wonderful memories with our parents. I feel like this year we got to really sit back and soak in the miracle of Christmas. It's not every day that we have a Holiday that celebrates family and sacrificial giving as much as Christmas. I'm thankful we got a chance to really celebrate. I hope you all had a good holiday season as well and 2014 brings you immeasurable amounts of hope.