A very Merry Christmas indeed....

Christmas this year was wonderful!  We were so very happy to have our special little one spend Christmas Eve afternoon and night with us as well as Christmas Day!  Mr. B as we affectionately call him, was 19 months old a few days before Christmas and what fun we had with him over the holiday.  He loved the little tree I decorated for him with a special ornament made for him by a kind person who knew we have him on the weekends.  I will tuck the ornament away into a special box for him.  One day when he opens the box I hope the ornament will remind him of his "family" here.

Mr. B attended my sister's traditional Christmas Eve gathering with us.  Another kind person donated the cutest little outfit for him to wear.  There were tiny black dress shoes, black dress pants with a sharp crease, a vest and tie and a dress shirt!  Oh my, he looked even cuter if possible!  He seemed to enjoy the dressing up probably due to all the oohs and ahhs he received whenever he entered a room!

Mr. B thoroughly enjoyed the family get-togther, receiving all kinds of presents from my family.  There was an awesome big book from Benjamin and Allison, two little trucks from Margaret and her family which he promptly pushed around the floor, making "truck" noises all the while.  My mom gave him a cuddly little moose which he promptly hugged and a soft teddy bear to cuddle with.  He was the life of the party, providing great dancing!  He loves music and can dance the night away!

After returning home from the party Christmas Eve, Ashton got out one of our favorite Christmas books and "Uncle" Eric read him "The Night Before Christmas".  Mr. B settled down happily and listened attentively to the story.  I can't even begin to express how happy we were to share this special holiday with him. 

Off to bed Mr. B went in his brand new Christmas pajamas, we have a tradition in that Ashton and I get a new pair of Christmas pajamas each year to wear on Christmas Eve and then Christmas day when the Lorrain family gathers together for their family Christmas and breakfast.

Christmas morning Mr. B was up about 7 a.m. which is a great time indeed!  Most weekends when he is here he likes to wake up the household around 5 a.m.!  Santa had filled a stocking for Mr. B and he received crayons and Play-Doh and Boston Red Sox socks (we are New Englanders after all!) and Boston Celtics socks...my middle child, Benjamin works in sales for the Boston Celtics.  He opened gifts from his mom and grandparents, they arrived late Christmas Eve afternoon, just in time!  He received a pair of Christmas pjs from his family so I changed him into them for the next big event...the Lorrain family Christmas get-together.  He is loved very dearly by Mark's sister Christina and he loves her right back.  He will walk by her wedding photo here and stop and point at her in the photo.  When she stops by to see him he runs with outstretched arms to her every time.  He happily opened presents from Mark's entire family, oh I wished I could tell him how very much he has impacted so many people's lives....he got a piggy bank and music player and lots of new clothes...he must be the best dressed little boy ever. 

We took him to his foster home later that day.  He wore his new raccoon hat given to him by Eric's family and happily brought his new music player with him.  His foster mom sent me a text later that day...Mr. B fell asleep on their family dog...such a precious way to end our day, an innocent little one and a soft, cuddly dog napping....

I have tears filling my eyes as I type this post, we are so very very happy to be so involved in his life even though we aren't relatives. I have such a special bond with Mr. B...I pray daily that he will have a happy, loving life and that he can be part of our lives forever....Ashton and Eric's, mine and Mark's, my family and Mark's family...he is truly a gift from God that we have been fortunate to receive.  We have been blessed to have him weekends since September and never know when one will be the last visit...so many mixed emotions over this.  I just pray and hope that he knows how very very much I love him.