Growing up, my family never really celebrated Christmas much. We put up Christmas lights if the person responsible for the chore felt like doing it that year, we hardly ever exchanged gifts, we never got a Christmas tree until after living in Canada for about 10 plus years (that was the first and final year we ever got one), and we always had Chinese food on Christmas Eve. So as you can see, I guess you can say I was quite Christmas deprived.
As a child, I envied how other children got to help put up the Christmas tree, open gifts on Christmas day, enjoy their beautifully lit house, and even eat turkey (sounds kind of silly now). As I grew up, I got used to not doing all those things.
Then one Christmas Eve, everything changed. You were born.
Yes, you (on the right)Β were the exact replica of your Dad (on the left),
but I was just fine with that, because although you looked like him, you did things like me.
You slept like me.
You dressed like me.
You had a temper like me when someone tried to take away your food.
You even cleaned (or as Dad would call it, OCD-ed) like me.
I gave you life, but you taught me the true meaning of life. This Christmas you even gave me the best present ever (other than your birth of course).
It was a mold of your handprint, and written on the back was this poem:
Ever since you came into my life, you changed Christmas Eve forever. I promise to make every Christmas Eve as magical for you (and your little sidekick) every year as you have made it for me.
With all my love, always and forever,
Mommy β€
I also want to take this time to thank all my wonderful readers for dropping by every week and visiting. I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and happy holidays with your loved ones. Wishing you a Happy New Year filled with love, joy, prosperity, good fortune, and good health!
Doesn’t our legislature building look totally different (and beautiful) in the winter?
Thanks for stopping by again everyone. I promise there will be food in my next post. Until next time, friends and family. π
luvtoeat 
What a heart-warming post, Lequan! Love those shots. Hahaha! Motherhood changes a lot of things indeed. I used to be spoilt & pampered but having a child has made me a better person & I’m so proud of myself π I’m a mother of a 15-year-old boy!! Hooray!
Let’s give a toast to our kids! Happy 2011!!
Hey LeQuanis, why are you trying to make me start my new year crying and bloated with a red face (smile)?! Really, this was such a sweet post, LeQuan. I would copy and save it in some kind of file in case WordPress, Blogger, and such go up in smoke due to, well, something we can’t anticipate at this moment in time. You know? K needs to see this when she’s older too. Me thinks at least…
Oh, and I never realized that K looks like her Dad. She does though in that photo of her when she’s a baby in bed with you. She looks just like him! Cute.
Hey, I might have already told you this, but I hope you guys have a really happy new year.
XOXO,
Stella
p.s. I’m wearing a poofy blue robe right now as I write this. It looks just like yours. I call it my smurf robe:)
adorable! yay x-mas eve babies!
Happy Happy Birthday!!!
Love the pic of both of you sleeping with your hand up. hahaha. so awesome π Happy New Year!
This is absolutely precious…you made me cry π
Happy Birthday to your beautiful K…
Lequan I hope you and your family have a most beautiful 2011!
Love and hugs,
Alisha
What a wonderful, heartfelt post LeQuan! My family never celebrated Christmas either but I always swore that I would do so when I got married and had a family of my own. I’m so glad that someone else can relate!
Your family is gorgeous, as are you. Wishing you and all of your loved ones a wonderful New Year’s Eve and a fantastic 2011! May it be your best year yet.
Thanks for sharing your story. We don’t celebrate Christmas as well but we do take the opportunity to get-together around good food π
Wish you and your family a Happy New Year!
lequan,
Thanks for sharing those wonderful memories with us! Happy birthday to your PRECIOUS! Give her a BIG BEAR HUG for me! Tell her it is from a Yellow Skin Quaypo from Malaysia! hehe
This is a lovely post LeQuan! I love the picture of the two of you sleeping and that video made me laugh. She is just adorable! Ro-Ri San says that she is a baby after my heart π Happy Belated Birthday to your precious and a very Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year to you and your family!
What a gorgeous post my friend!
Love those shots. Espaecially the one with Dad and baby sleeping in the same pose! Lovely lovely memories and so heart tugging to us Moms.
Here’s wishing you and your lovely lovely family a glorious New Year, Le Quan π
Chow, Devaki @ weavethousandflavors
That was the most hilarious video I have ever seen!!!! Talk about a baby with OCD!!!! Obviously, mommy is clearing A LOT! What a WONDERFUL, heartfelt and loving post. Children are our miracles, aren’t they? No matter how hard life gets, or what problems one faces – after you become a parent, there is always that brilliant diamond to share your day with and children and child rearing somehow diminishes the problems that used to see so big and daunting.
I have a story I must tell you about Ragan cleaning the tub at three years old. It is hilarious, too!
We are in Banff right now. I bought Vanja a surprise stay at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel and we have had such a glorious time so far. Tomorrow, we have booked a dog sleigh ride and as you know – usually these are only found in the Territories, so I am thrilled we can do it here. It will be my first one ever (of course!)
Happy New Year to the Princess and her side kick and you and Gary! BIG HUGS to you all.
π
Valerie
You and Vanja are the cutest couple! Have a great time in Banff! Enjoy the sleigh ride (so jealous!).
Lequan…, I read this through the other day & I was blubbering away but so, so touched. I was just about to go out to a swish dinner with my fella (who incidentally looked at me quite strangely wondering what was wrong).., and decided a post like this was worth much more than a passing Awwhhhhh. So, left it till now. I’ve read it again, watched your little video…. more tears, then went on to see the beautiful lights & snow. Your Christmas now looks complete my friend, absolutely complete π
Happy New Year Lovely Lequan…, I hope 2011 is your best year yet, filled with all the best things (although seriously girlfriend…, I do believe it’ll be hard to top what you’ve got).
This was such a touching post. I teared up reading it.
Happy New Year LeQuan! π Wishing you nothing but the best for 2011.
Such a sweet post, LeQuan. I’m sure after K grew up and read this, she’ll be so touched π
Happy New Year 2011!
Hello Lequan, This is such a sweet and touching post. I enjoyed reading twice and its really warm my heart π
Happy Birthday to your little precious and Happy New Year 2011 π
Thank you for always leave your sweet comments in my blog, I am really glad to get to know you thru blogging. ((HUG))
That was such a beautiful, touching, heartwarming post! I actually teared up reading this. And that was such a meaningful beautiful poem, I loved it. It’s one of those things you will keep forever. Loved the photos and how she’s so much like you! Especially the sleeping one haha :D. She’s absolutely gorgeous – like mother like daughter. Can’t tell you much I loved reading this, it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. I read it a few times over and over.
The video was sooo cute! She was cleaning everything from your oven to her toys! I’ve never seen kids do that before, she really is her mother’s daughter! π What was it she said at the end? It sounded like “I want it to be cl..” and I thought she was saying she wants it to be clean.
Wishing you and your lovely family a most wonderful and blessed New Year full of joy and prosperity.
Also, thought you might like to know I made your beef salad another 3 times since the first time I made it! I love it that much π
Thank you for the sweet comment, Sharon. I think she was just mumbling at the end. Don’t think she was able to talk yet.
That is so wonderful to hear about the beef salad. I’m so happy that you liked it so much. The great thing about this salad is that you can eat it as is or with rice. Have a great 2011, my friend!
Oh was she? Haha, I don’t know why it sounded like that to me. She is honestly SO adorable and so is her ‘sidekick’. You’re a very lucky mom π
Yup, I normally have it with rice. I have yet to make it for my mom and I know she’ll love it too. Happy 2011!
What a lovely post. What’s even better is that she will be able to read it herself one day and appreciate you even more!
Happy new year, LeQuan!
Well this was a wonderful way for me to end my New Years Day. Your post brought tears to my eyes, and it made me look forward to the day that Ryan and I will bring a child into the world. The love you have for your precious child reminds me of all that is good and beautiful in this world. She is stunning, just as you are, and I know that as she grows older, the love you share will grow as well. I can imagine her writing a blog one day…she will talk about the wonderful and loving parents she has and how they have made her the the strong and caring person that she is. Thank you so much for sharing with me tonight. I hope you have a wonderful Sunday.
What a lovely, sweet, touching post to end the year!! It just warms my heart and reminds me of the many sweet moments I had with my girls when they were young. Today they are grown up and ready for the world. It’s such joy! It’s just so wonderful to see such a wonderful family. Both you and your hubby are such loving parents. Love all the pictures. My gosh….you and your girl look like peas in a pod…haha. Cute video, too and that’s such a beautiful handprint gift. Wishing you and your family a great year 2011 with more amazing family time together! Hugs and Cheers for 2011!
You are a lucky one! The picture of you two sleeping is priceless and the video is adorable. Happy we connected in 2010. You’ve made me laugh and smile repeatedly.
ζ°εΉ΄εΏ«ζ¨ οΌοΌοΌ
Aww, thanks Cindy.You are such a kind, sweet, and generous person (not to mention, hilarious as well). I’m really happy to have “met” you. Your comments on FB always make me laugh.
Impressed with the Chinese, my friend! ·s€ϋ§ΦΌΦ to you as well! Stalk ya soon π
Ohhhh, this is so incredibly sweet, LeQuan! You have a really beautiful way with words. Happy birthday to your little angel, that handprint is truly something to treasure. I’m wishing you and yours a very happy New Year!
What a beautiful, beautiful post, LeeQs! I can’t even imagine how special is must have been to have K right before Christmas. No ho-hum Christmasses for you anymore, no sirree! I giggled so much at the picture of you and K asleep (and I think she looks more like YOU in that picture!), and the video is just too precious! I just about had a fit when K started wiping the floor, and again when she was cleaning her toy and it started making noise. Just like Mommy! (Although, there wasn’t much to clean because her OCD mommy had already left the place sparkling! π ). A lovely tribute to you daughter, LeQuan. She’s going to look back on these pictures and your posts and know that you love her with all your heart.
It’s been so wonderful to get to know you over the past (almost) year! To have you live down the street would make things complete π A very happy New Year to you and Gary and K and L and your parents! Much love!
Aww, what a wonderful Christmas present that must have been! Happy birthday to your little one! I hope you guys had a great celebration and Happy New Year!
Lequan, what a blessing…I enjoyed every single picture…thank you so much for sharing it.
What a lovely post! Sorry, I have been missing from the blog world. Glad to be back and glad to read your blog!
This was such a beautiful post, Lequan. I think your daughter will look back on this post in the middle of her tantrum-filled teenage years and realize how much you love her. Happy new year, friend! π
Lequan,
I think this may be one of the most beautiful secular testaments to Christmas I have ever read. Thank you.
Hi LeQuan π
I know I have been taking a LONG break, but I just wanted to say hello and after reading your post, I have a rather painful lump in my throat – I didn’t even realise this was a calorie free post π until you promised to have food next time!
I hope you and your beautiful family had a wonderful Christmas and New Year and that K will continue to inspire many more beautiful year end celebrations.
K – hope you had a lovely time on your special day!
These photos are priceless and thanks for the delightful video – you really make me wish I had someone who loves a clean house as much as I do ROFL
First you made me almost cry, and now, I’m wiping tears of laughter from my eyes π
Only you, LeQuan π
Denise! I hope you’re having a really good blogging break. Take all the time you need, my friend. Sometimes we just need to be away from blogging and spend “us” time. I totally understand. It means a lot that you’re dropping in even on your blogging break, thank you for that, Denise. I hope everything is going well with you. Hope to hear from you soon, but only when you’re ready π
I’m not gonna lie, LeQuan. I have teary eyes as reading this post. The pictures and story are powerful and overwhelming. It’s so touching and I could imagine myself what I would feel if “my kid” did something like that to me. It also makes me wanna have kid(s) soon, seriously!
Together with family and close friends are all matter for Christmas to me. I’m not religious so I leave that out for now. LOVE the photos you posted it here -beautiful and touching!
I love this post, so sweet, so heartwarming! Children teach us some very important lessons of life, heck, I think they teach us how to live our lives better, with more fun!!
Happy New Year Lequan! I will catch up better when I get home from my trip but quickly wanted to check in. Best wishes, Patty
Beautiful post, love your sentiments;-)