Merry Christmas!

It's been a very merry Christmas for the Knutsons, and we've been busy (hence the lull in blog activity). We've enjoyed a long break and spent most of our time with our family (from both sides), who all traveled to Minnesota for a white Christmas.

We all enjoyed *lots* of good food and some fun activities, like playing Rock Band (and waking up Henry with "Rebel Yell"), sledding, after-Christmas sales at TARGET!, and visiting the Maple Grove Community Center for swimming and the indoor maze. I had good intentions of getting us to Holidazzle this year, but the weather was icy the night we wanted to go. Next year, next year. .. Henry and cousin Landon (both 1) were especially hilarious (and challenging at times) to watch. Each one only wanted what the other had. So everyone had to run lots of interference between those two, but it was fun to see how busy these little toddlers were.

The pictures are of some of the highlights for Christmas gifts. Grandma and Grandpa Knutson gave the kids some really cute personalized chairs. Erik & Chelsea gave Henry a new pair of wheels.

Grandma Rita gave the kids some outdoor wheels and a new train set. And Grandma and Grandpa Schwartz gave the kids their very first big kid sled. They sure are very blessed and loved children! Thanks!

Given the downturn in our economy, it was important to us to make sure that we help families in need during this very special time of the year. So, our family participated in two Adopt-A-Family programs - one at work and one through church - and I pray that those families had a brighter Christmas through our efforts. I hope it's a tradition that we can continue in years to come so that we can teach our kids the true meaning of Christmas....

We hope you all had a great Christmas and best wishes in 2009!