A Merry Christmas

We've had a lovely day--a quiet start, then a few phone calls with friends and family, and finally dinner at Derek's house with his children and girlfriend. We enjoyed watching as they opened the gifts we brought them. Hannah liked the globe--she and I played with it and I showed her where her Dad was and where we were, and where Uncle Tommy was in Germany. It helped her visualize the distances, and to have a way to "see" Iraq as a real place, not just a word.

But there was a surprise in store in the evening--Tiffany had set up a webcam and Derek had one too, so through the internet we were able to IM with him and actually see him on-screen. He got to see the kids, and they showed him their favorite gifts--Jared's tee-shirt with a gift tag on the front that said "To: Women From: God"; Haley's bike, Hannah's great big "diamond" I found for her at a gift shop.

While the webcam wasn't perfect--slow speed on our end made the connection jerky--it sure was nice to see Derek and to get a glimpse of where he is. He got up at 4:30 AM to get online with us, so he looked a little groggy. But what pleasure to be able to share, in some part, the fun of Christmas with him.

And now, to all a good night!