Christmas was pretty laid back at our house- just the way we like it.  Before Sennet, Kevin and I went to a movie on Christmas day and usually even on Christmas eve.  Thanksgiving seems to be the holiday that I make the huge spread and have friends over, etc.  Christmas has never been a big deal to me,  but now Sennet is really into it so I am trying to come up with some memorable traditions that aren’t so over-the-top consumer driven.  We’ll do cookies for Santa and this year we renewed our movie tradition with Sennet and we had Chinese food for dinner- so we may be onto something there for the future.  We also want Christmas to be about giving and we talked about toys for tots, but that just seems so impersonal and I don’t really think there is a teachable moment in buying a gift for some nameless, faceless kid.  A few weeks ago, we drove past this homeless camp, although I didnt know that is what it was at the time.  I even asked Kevin what is was and he hadn’t seen it because he was driving.  Serendipity was at work because the very next morning, the Seattle Times wrote an article about the camp and the fact that there were kids living there.  Read the article here.  Later that afternoon, there was some back and forth on this moms group called Madrona moms and someone had gone down to the camp and found out what they needed.  Thankfully, there were only 2 (not that is an acceptable number) children living there rather than the 15 mentioned in the times article.  The homeless boys are 10 and 5 and their sizes along with items they needed were listed in Madrona moms.  I went shopping that same day and bought each boy a winter coat, gloves, jeans, sweats, 3 shirts and a pair of tennis shoes.   I also got a gift card for the grocery store that is only a block away from the camp for the mom.  I picked Sennet up from school early and he went with me to deliver them to the mom.  When we got there, the homeless people looked pretty much exactly like I expected- toothless, apparent drug users, sterotype after sterotype went through my head…. until I asked for the boys mom.  She came out of her shelter and I was pretty shocked after seeing the other residents.  She was young- probably mid-20’s and looked pretty normal and well groomed.  She is a little hippy looking with pink dreads- but nothing like the other residents.  The oldest boy had just gotten home from school so we met him also,  He also looked well cared for and didn’t really seem to realize how desperate their situation is- which I guess is a blessing? I asked her how she got there and she said a series of events, job loss somewhat dictated by unreliable child care for the youngest, her youngest got ill and they didnt have health care, deadbeat dads, etc, etc.  She said they were always on the edge of being homeless and in August finally were evicted and moved to Seattle from a small town up north that had no resources for homeless or working poor.  She was well-spoken and seemed grateful.  She had just found subsidized child care for the youngest so was hoping to find a kitchen job in the new year.  Sennet was nervous at the camp and it was freezing outside and he kept saying he was cold.  We all know how he loves to be cold.  On the way home, he just kept asking over and over how they could sleep in those little buildings without warm rooms.  I would say it was a teachable moment.  Sadly, by the time we dropped these items off, there were two other children living in the camp- two girls ages 3 and 6.  I posted their story and needs on Madrona moms and other families were called to action and provided for them as well.

On Christmas eve, we made sugar cookies for Santa and Sennet loved sprinkling the colored sugar before we baked them.

On Christmas eve, Sennet got to pick one gift to open and he selected this package from grammie.  It turned out to be a great choice because there was 4 cars!


Christmas morning he selected a snowman package to open first and it was a game that Aunt D sent!  We have played it about 500 times since then so I would say it is a hit!





These race car tracks are huge hit too- thanks grammie!

Sennet often sits this way, with his not-so-little feet crossed.  I love it.

and this is the one he has been waiting for.  This is his gift from Santa that he has been talking about for months.  The only thing he asked for when we went to see Santa.

looks so grown here.

Pretty much my life now.  His favorites are Candy Land, Zingo Bingo and go fish- and I think we will be adding Uncle Wiggly to that list if the last 24 hours is any indicator.  My favorites are Qwirkle and A bugs Trail (not pictured) but I think they might be a bit above his concentration level- but we’ll get there and hopefully before I go brain dead from Candy Land.

This is less than 24 hours after he opened his gifts!