An update and A WINNER!!!!!

Okay, so I sat down to write about my holidays the other day and I had so much to say that the post got REALLY long, so I decided to divide it up and just post a little bit here along with the winner of the last giveaway...I know that's what you are really here for anyway!! ;)

So the holidays were difficult, I don't need to tell all of you that. Something was definitely missing from my heart. It is kind of funny (not ha ha funny, but peculiar funny) that even though these two little girls were never physically here on a previous holiday, their absence can still be felt so much. However, some people IRL were very thoughtful and remembered my girls in some way and I thought I would start by sharing that.

As I mentioned before, we bought a little white Christmas Tree for Sophia & Ellie, well actually my parents bought it for them. We decorated it in all pink; pink bows, pink sparkly foliage, etc. My mom bought two sweet, white, puffy angel ornaments that we hung on the tree and she also bought silver and rhinestone initial ornaments for both the girls. These were so heavy so I just laid them at the base of the tree. I also bought some ornaments for the girls. There are the two sleeping babies wrapped in wings and also a silver mother with he saying "A mother holds her children's hands for a while, their hearts forever" printed on it. I thought this message was perfect for how I feel.

My IRL friend "L" surprised me with a little something. She took four white glass ornaments and wrote each of my children's names on one of the ornaments. What a lovely gift from a lovely friend. They are so special to me and I love seeing all four of them hang together on my tree.

My sil also surprised me with a gift. She gave me two Lenox angel ornaments that each have Sophia's & Ellie's names printed on them. They are very precious and it was such a thoughtful thing for her to do.

I wanted to find a stocking for Sophia & Ellie to hang from the mantel with the rest of ours. I had a really difficult time with this because nothing was just right. I finally settled on a light pink stocking with a tiara pinned on it. I asked my other sil, who is a wonderful seamstress, if she would embroider the girls' names on it for me. She did and it is beautiful. Even though it is not what I had envisioned, it is perfect.

Then on Christmas Day, my aunt & uncle (my mom's sister & husband) surprised me with a special gift too. They live a few hours away and apparently there is a 93 year old woman who makes ornaments by hand in their town. They gave me 2 special angels that this lady made. I was truly touched by their thoughtfulness. I don't see them very often and to know they thought of my girls brought tears to my eyes (and down my cheeks.)

I know this sounds self-centered, but I am surprised that a few of my other friends/family didn't mention my girls at all. A little message to say they are thinking about all of us would have been much appreciated. I know it is a busy time of year, and it is so easy to get caught up in all that is going on, but I don't know...it would have been nice. I guess I am expecting too much and should just be thankful for what these wonderful people did for my girls. I hope people expressed their thoughts of your babies to you too during this holiday season.

NOW FOR THE WINNER...

Using random.org, the winner is commenter #8...MB at Three Pairs of Feet!! Congratulations MB!!! Contact me at hutchtina@bak.rr.com and we will get it all worked out!

Thank you all so much for participating in the giveaways. I think it was a great way to bring a smile to our faces. I hope we can do it again next Christmas!!