The Look Of Hope

Chapter 62: Naughty And Nice

Christmas morning, Mary awoke to the excitement of little girls and also something warm and heavy. Looking over her shoulder, she noticed her husband is home. His arm is draped over her. This would explain something warm and heavy. Loud little feet bounded into the bedroom. 

"Mommy! Mommy! Wake up! Santa came," Lydia proclaimed with a loud whispering voice. Her eyes sparkled. Eagerness is written all over her face.

Her little sister is right behind her and was just as insistent. "Mommy! Didn't you hear? Santa came! He visit us. Come on!" She's just as enthusiastic.

Yawning Mary took off her eye mask, put it under her pillow, and turned the cover back. As soon as the slippers were on her feet, the girls came over and took her hands. They began pulling her out of the bedroom, into the living room. 

It's way too early for this much energy. Regardless, Mary put on her happy face. Once in the living room, the girls sat around the tree. They rummaged through the wrapped gifts Santa left. Since they can now distinguish their parent's handwriting, Mary had a wonderful idea which involved her brother-in-law. Johnny can write the girl's names on a bajillion name tags, from Santa. "Why am I doing this?" he asked her. 

With honesty, she explained. "Because your handwriting is messy and the girls haven't ever seen your writing." 

He furrowed his brows in an aggrieved way and began writing nametags. "Little girls are too much work," he asserted. It's the same tone of voice he uses when he's about to say his "tiny hollow bones" stuff.

And yet messy name tags and all, the girls began dividing the gifts out. Once all of Santa's gifts had been separated, they were ready to open them. "Wait!" their mother exclaimed. "I don't have the camera yet. No peeking!" As her daughters groaned with impatience, she ran to the bedroom and opened the side table drawer. 

While she dug through the drawer, Bobby stirred. "What are you doing? Come back to bed. It's early still." He placed an arm over his eyes.

Continuing to dig, she remarked "Nope! Can't! Santa came and the girls are waiting for me to open their gifts. I'm trying to find the camera." At last, she found it, buried under a scarf. Standing to her full height, she clasped it in her hands and started to leave the room. Her husband stopped her with a "Hold on". 

Getting out of bed, he stretched and went to the dresser. After throwing on a T-shirt and pajama bottoms, he held her free hand to the living room. "Daddy!" The girls shouted his name and ran over to him. They gave him a hug. He swung Lydia up in his arms. She giggled as he carried her to the tree and set her down. 

He and Mary sat on the rug, with the coffee table to their backs. She snapped pictures as the girls tore off all the wrappings. "A Game Boy! Cool!", "I got a Furby" it went on and on. Grace got so excited when she opened "A Buzz Lightyear! Santa got me Buzz! To infinity and beyond." She thought he would be great for when she played Barbie's, Barbie, and Buzz. Lydia's favorite happened to be "A Talkboy! Look, Mommy! A Talkboy, just like in Home Alone 2."

When the girls had opened all of their gifts, they noticed four still under the tree. Lydia took one and Grace took the other. They both looked at the names. Lydia declared, "They're for you, Mommy and Daddy." Then they grabbed the other two. "They're for Rhett and Becca," Grace stated.  They handed their parents the gifts. 

Holding the box in her hands, Mary remarked "Santa brought me a gift?" They nodded their heads, while Bobby smiled. Grace shouted out "It's a big box, Mommy!"