Present Report 2023

I always give a disclaimer here, so here it is again. I know Christmas isn’t just about gifts. I’m not posting about presents to steal the glory from God, or brag about all the presents we got. And likely, you’ll be able to see that by the simplicity of our Christmas gifts 🙂 I DO share these things to offer ideas for gifts at certain ages, some more practical or simple but still great! I enjoy reading what other people think of for their children, so maybe some of you enjoy it too 🙂 I hope so, anyway! 

As many of you know, I follow along with the four categories for Christmas. Something they want, something they need, something to wear, and something to read. And then I usually find a group gift or something like that. Its not a hard and fast system, but it does mean I have less broken plastic toys in my house come the new year! We like it, and its what the kids are totally used to. I love some reasonable expectations! 

So we’ll start with Dekker. His “want” was a box of motor parts off of Amazon. He loves to tinker, and now he has a jumping off point for some new projects! Stemming off of that, his “need” is a soldering iron and some wire! He has used Bradys for a long time now, so we thought he should have his own. Of course Brady got one too, hahaha! In fact, Dekker came across one of the new ones and seemed a little jealous that Brady was getting one, hahaha! He laughed so hard when he realized he got one! Dekkers item to wear is a cozy camouflage onesie. Also, fresh underwear. And his book to read is a Christmas book written by Gordon Korman, who was my favorite author as a kid, and who Dekker has also come to really enjoy! 

Laela is next! Her want is a set where she can make and decorate her own cold cup! She loves crafts, and she likes fancy things, so I think she’ll get a kick out of personalizing a drinking cup 🙂 Her need is a multicoloured lamp for her new room in the new house. She also got underwear and a onesie. Her onesie is bright and neon and pink and purple. VERY Laela. And to read, I got the end of her favorite series, Elizabeth Gail, off of Thriftbooks. She LOVES that series. Its a Christian series that focuses on a young girl who solves mysteries, but she is a foster child, so they also address that aspect of her life! Its pretty interesting to see that so well portrayed in books for kids. 

Rowan is third in line! His want is a tool kit, since he’s been actively using one of mine pretty much all year 😅 He needs his own, and now he has it. His need is also a colourful lamp for his next room, which I think he will absolutely love. His wear – underwear and a onesie with gaming controllers all over it. I know for a fact he won’t wear the onesie much because he does NOT like to be hot. Nope nope nope. But I do think he’d feel sad not to have one with everyone else. So I think we’ll let him wear it out in the van a couple of times for some drives, and he’ll like that 🙂 And his book to read is a super action bible devotional! Its graphic novel style! VERY cool for a boy who LOVES Jesus, and is a great reader, but cares more about the pictures, lol! 

Solomon is fun to give presents too. He gets SO hyper and jumps all over the place and stops speaking in full sentences, haha! He is overstimulated, but totally happy 🙂 This year, for his want, Solly got a Lego Technics set that builds a snowmobile and a snow crawler/groomer thing. His first Technics set! His need is a cute corgi face glasses stand, so there is no excuse for him to hurl his glasses onto his dresser willy nilly before bed 😅 His wear is like everyone elses – underwear and a onesie. A green plaid onesie with antlers on the hood, to be exact. And his book was a Lego ideas book!!

Waverly is super easy to please in terms of gifts. Her want was a banana Squishmallow, hahaha! She LOVED it. And it only adds to the fun that her loving care buddy from school also got her a Squishmallow! So lots of new soft things for Wave! Her thing she needed was an electric toothbrush and bubble gum toothpaste! She is an AMAZING brusher, so she definitely deserved the upgrade! Her wear – underwear and a onesie that is pink and pompommy, covered in pictures of breakfast foods with faces 😂 VERY her. Aaaaand to please the girly and the masses, her book is a seek-and-find type of book called “Who Farted” where you search the pages for all the farts. She opened it and said “Oh! Its a big book of farts!” She’s a big fan.

The morsel!! It was fun to have a baby to buy for again! It had been a while. Their want this year was a personalized name puzzle that I ordered off of Amazon. It felt important to have something personalized. The baby needs palm crayons, which maybe is a little advanced, but not for long, I don’t think 🙂 I figured I could call it a need, because, development. Their wear is a onesie. It feels more wooly and outerweary than the pajama ones, but it’ll do! And their read was Sandra Boynton’s festive “Moo Baa Fa La La La La.” We love her books, and this one reads SO well, so it was an obvious choice.

The spoonful felt like a last minute addition in a way, but we are HAPPY to have kid #7 on board with us for the season!!! Little Spoony wanted a specific little Lamaze toy that took a surprising amount of work to track down! My own fault, haha! They needed some sippy cups. They wear a cute soft little hooded onesie, and they read a book called “Snow” by Leslie Patricelli. If you haven’t seen her books, they are very young but VERY good! My kids love the tubby book because they talk about farts. Get ready for that, lol!

What is everyone’s favorite gift out of the above?

Dekker loves his soldering iron.

Laela loves her lamp.

Rowan loves his lamp.

Solly loves his Lego set.

Wavy loves her jammies.

The morsel loves their book.

The spoonful loves playing with the sippy cups.

All in all, it was a VERY cute time with the kids. Those were only the things they got from us! Let me tell you, these kids are NOT hurting for presents, which is just incredible and so honouring!

The day has been spent opening gifts, playing with said gifts, drinking coffee, putting our feet up, and simply enjoying time together. What a beautiful peaceful day 💜 Thank you Lord for sending that Son of yours. The true gift in amongst all this other stuff. I couldn’t be more grateful 💜

Merry Christmas, sweet friends.