Christmas Eve the parents are hurrying to wrap presents and I know I wasn’t alone in that as I watched many parents on Facebook talk about how late they were going to be up wrapping presents just to have their kids rip through the paper the next morning quicker than my 3 year old can run from one side of the house to the other.

Christmas is a wonderful time to be reminded of family and being grateful for the things we have, but when you are a child you long to see what Santa Claus is bringing you and hope that he brings that special something on your list. Each year I watch as my kids are ecstatic about the gifts underneath our tree but then a few weeks later most of the new toys become obsolete as the kids toss them aside to continue playing with their old toys. This act always makes me wonder if buying presents for Christmas is even worth the three week happiness of the new toys or not.

This year was different, this year my children are still either playing with their fave presents or raving about what they received. This year I am smiling more often than not knowing that not only did I score as a parent, but Santa and the grandparents  scored with gifts to the kids too!

Meet FIJIT Friends Serafina

My daughter is in LOVE with her FIJIT friend that arrived as a gift from Grampa and Grammy Cathy. The girl is constantly playing, dancing and talking with this FIJIT friend who now has a new addition from the same grandparents; a FIJIT friend newbies Green Zia Figure. These two friends communicate with each other and my daughter enjoys watching them interact. At times my daughter can be found shut inside of her room chatting away with her FIJIT friends because my house is WAY too loud with the little boys for her FIJIT friends to hear her speak to them. These things are creepy in some ways but totally cool in others. A huge hit thanks to the grandparents for these cute toys.

DUNKIN DONUTS Munchkins

My three year old son only wanted Santa Claus to bring him Dunkin Donuts donuts for Christmas. Early on Christmas morning we watched as the kids opened present after present and one was a gift from Santa, to our surprise it was a wrapped up box of Dunkin Donuts munchkin hole treats. My three year old dropped everything and ripped a donut hole out of the box and gave a big ole thumbs up while eating that donut hole in one bite! This was a priceless moment, unfortunately not caught on film that I probably will remember for the rest of my life — the magic of Santa and Christmas lives on for another year!

OTHER FAB GIFTS

My daughter received an outfit from Meme, my mother, that she would live in if I let her. It’s preppy-ish and makes her look so much older, sigh, but it’s gorgeous and makes my daughter feel so pretty. This outfit was a HUGE hit.

My five year old son received a wide variety of gifts and probably the one he still plays with the most is his monster truck from Grampa and Grammy Cathy, my Dad and step mom.

This year was a hit — the kids are still loving everything about Christmas Day and I am happy to see them continue to be happy and thankful for what they received on that special day!

What gifts were a hit in your house?