She was able to open one present on Christmas Eve before Santa came. It was her Christmas pajamas. Before bed, the only request she had was to read the "Night Before Christmas." We told her that she could not come out of her room in the morning until we came to get her. We didn't want to miss out on her expression in the morning. We got up around 7 am and she was not awake. We waited until about 8:15 am and then woke her up. She had a hard time falling asleep the night before due to the anticipation, but when she did finally sleep, she slept hard.
Santa didn't disappoint. She got just about everything she asked for. It took her a while to recognize her "big" gift. But when she did see the iPod Touch, it was hugs all around to make sure everyone knew her joy. It has been her constant companion (within mom and dad's guidelines) for the past 24 hours.
The day continued on with presents a Gigi and Papouli's, Mammaw's, and then back at our house with presents from the PA Everitts. She was tuckered out by the end of the day and slept in this morning until almost 9 am. This a first for her... she is an early riser.
Today, we've spent the day opening and playing with presents. We've completed our post-Christmas purge. She was able to clean out her closet and drawers to make room for her new clothes, shoes, and toys. This was a first for her as she has never had so many things that she didn't have room to store it all. It was a great opportunity to teach her about giving to those who are less fortunate. Many of her clothes and toys are going back to help those who do not have the blessings that she now does. It was amazing to see her face, because she used to be the girl that got the hand-me downs from the abundantly blessed children. Now the roles are reversed in her favor.
As we put her to bed last night, we talked about the responsibility God has given us to raise her. It's awesome to realize that we only have 6 years to instill 18 years of life lessons. We only have a third of her childhood left. We talked about this with her and she said to us.... you can teach me three lessons each night before I go to bed and that way by the time I turn 18 I'll be all caught up. :) Oh, if it were only that simple, sweet girl.
As this update is being typed, we're in the process of filling in the missing gaps of her childhood. She is working with Gigi in her Easy Bake oven. While this is a gift that a 6 or 7 year old may request for Christmas, this is what Tabitha requested as a 12 year old girl. We happily fulfilled the request and are now making the memories that she missed out on. When she was 6 or 7, she was probably just trying to survive and make it to the next day. It's our prayer that she can have the next 6 years filled with little worry or care and be able to be the child she needs to be.
We still have lots of work as a family to do, but God is good. His blessings are new every morning.
Counting down the days until finalization! Hoping to get a court date after the new year to determine our finalization date.
Keep praying, Prayer Warriors!
So much fun! I can honestly say I think I know exactly how you and Kevin both felt on Christmas day. We loved experiencing this with Sawyer too. When we got home yesterday he was putting his new things away and making a donation pile with his old things. So many happy moments to balance out the challenging times.
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