Chelsea, Emmy, and Ellie-Kate pose for a picture after the church service.
Emmy plays "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" on her cello for the Albany Baptist Church Christmas Eve service.
*We had a fun and relaxing Christmas Eve... Christie did some last minute Christmas shopping in Walmart while Emmy and Chelsea made cookie dough. The girls did crafts, watched Christmas shows, and played with our new Wii. We ate our Casa leftovers for lunch and left for church around 4:15. The church service was simple and special-- we sang songs, listened to the Christmas story, and lit candles throughout the church without incident as we sang carols together. Emmy performed a cello solo, and Christie read "The Christmas Visitor" to the congregation, with the children sitting with her on the front steps of the stage. Back at home, we read a few stories, made cookies, and watched Santa Clause 2. We also checked Norad to find out Santa's location-- he was moving fast, scheduled to visit North America around midnight. We put fresh cookies on the counter and carrots in the yard, and the little girls headed for bed, eager for Santa to visit while they slept. Meanwhile, Christie did a bit of last minute wrapping, and Chelsea scrambled to come up with presents. (She did a good job of creating gifts in our basement at the 11th hour!!) As usual, Christie ended up watching a bit of the service at Saint Peter's Cathedral on tv before heading for bed :)
