WHERE'D YOU GET THOSE PEEPERS?

"Have any of you ever opened and peeked at your Christmas presents early?"  I asked the group.

The crowd divided like Democrats and Republicans!  Until then I never realized how aghast the No!-Never's were towards the ones who dared confess.  I fall into the latter group.  We figured everyone did it.  But the good-little-Do-Bees scowl at us like it never even crossed their pure, little minds to sneak a peek before Christmas Day.

Our first born daughter, Kimberly, must have acquired her nimble fingers from me.   She apparently found a box in my closet and carefully peeled back the tape to find a beautiful white, angora sweater embroidered with pearls.  Replacing it, she sneaked out without being detected.  Sheer joy of anticipation had her giggling the next few days.

Christmas family time began with our tradition of reading Luke 2.  The gifts were handed out then we took turns, youngest to oldest, opening one at a time.   Kimberly had a pile of gifts so she was totally shocked when she spotted her cousin, Karen, tearing into the very gift she'd pried open earlier.  She wanted to exclaim, "Hey!  That's mine!"  but saw the name tag and realized her beautiful sweater was never hers.  Years later she shared her pain and lesson learned.

Kimberly peeking FROM a box before she learned to peek INTO one!

                                                              

Karen, a peeker herself, had a different experience.  She was much younger than Kimberly and probably less skilled.  Her spying must have left evidence because her mother, Dianne, found the box and realized Karen had been tampering.  "Karen, did you look at this gift?"

Karen, the innocent years

  

Wide-eyed, she lied, "No.  I didn't seen it."

"You didn't?"

"No ma'am.  I just felt it," she continued her tangled web, "and it FELT red."  In her youth, she figured feeling a gift might not be as bad as actually seeing it. 

A few weeks ago during our Thanksgiving dinner the subject came up again in conversation and our daughter-in-law, Mary, came over to the dark peeker-side with other stalwart women of the clan.

We all agreed that we spoiled our own gift opening by peeking early.   Usually one peek cured us!

Here's a pictorial peek at our Christmases past.

Kent & Kimberly

The Hendersons

Kimberly, Katy & Kent waiting on my signal

Bert, Dianne, Brian & Karen

Our Raleigh home (Top) and my folks' down the street

Mama & Kimberly
I love this shot of them--both so beautiful!

Christine, Kimberly, Karen & Katy
(about the time of the angora sweater episode)

Daddy & Katy in his favorite chair, tall man's Lazy Boy

I hope your Christmas week was as blessed as ours.  It has been through the years.  And if I could "PEEK" into our future, I believe the best is yet to come because. . .

"God has planted eternity in our hearts."

Celebrating,

Kathy