Christmas Bears

Friday night our pastor and his wife and family hosted a lovely Christmas dinner for the church family.

I loved the cute decorations on the table.

Sis. Kearney had asked our family to have a little skit along with other fun things their family was going to provide.
We had just read the most hilarious Thanksgiving story about Irving Bear who loved to eat more than anything else in the world, and how his friends had to teach him a lesson about what was more important--food or friends for Thanksgiving.
We adapted the story for Christmas instead. 
Carrie and the children helped dress  up these paper bags for the skit.

Irving Bear, with his T-shirt that says, "I love FOOD."

His bear friends were stationed at appropriate places around the room to do their parts in the skit.

Here Renata Jean Bear (Carrie) is sitting at the piano.

Jonathan read the story while the children acted out their parts.

The worst (best) part was when Irving Bear's paper bag mask fell off as he was gathering all his marshmallows, candy canes and gingersnaps--

much to the delight of all the little children watching up close

(and all the adults, too!)

Thurp Bear (Timmy) waits by the sliding door to do his part.

Sabra Bear, Renata Jean Bear, and Thurp Bear all teach Irving a good lesson.

After the skit, the bears helped unwrap a surprise--
a Christmas money wreath for the pastor and his wife from all the Foothills Missionary Church Bears!

The "Bear Family" with the pastor and his wife and granddaughter.

I loved Sis. Katherine's creativity with how she attached money and gift cards to this wreath.

Some of the bills were folded in fan shapes.

Others were rolled up and tied with bows.

Then Bro. Kearney divided us all up by tables, and we had to take turns singing parts to "The Twelve Days of Christmas." Bro. Chase ended up singing solo for "the partridge in the pear tree," and stole the show. The Kearney clan roared out "Five gold rings," every time around, and were definitely the loudest.
Bro. French brought out that in olden days, "The Twelve Days of Christmas" was actually a code song for the persecuted church. Each verse had a gospel meaning.
That was new to me, and I'd like to research that. The partridge in the pear "tree" was almost certainly Jesus, as the song always comes back to that.
After that good activity, the Kearneys did this little skit along with the song
"Percy, the Puny Poinsettia"
who was puny because he was not watered enough.

All the pretty poinsettias were chosen and bought, leaving him lonely and sad. 

Finally a crying little girl (Bro. Kearney's granddaughter) came and loved the puny poinsettia and cheered it all up!

 That was a very cute piece!

It was great seeing another family willingly do something fun together like that.

Then we had two games. This one, we were given a gift box, wrapping paper, ribbon, a bow, scissors and tape, and each table of people was supposed to wrap the box, but one hand had to be behind our back! We had to work together with one hand!

 Then the three Kearney young ladies were the judges to decide which gift was wrapped the best--

 and there would be prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd best.

 This table won the prize!

It was such a fun evening! We finished with Christmas carols.

Even church people need some joy every once in a while!

And it was definitely an evening of lots of joy!

It can help heal hurting hearts, and there isn't a church anywhere that doesn't have its share of hurts and problems and people who look cross-eyed at each other
and wish the other person would either shut up or grow up.
And so, simply because we do have to be serious about working out problems together,
we also need to be serious about getting together to eat, laugh, sing, worship, have fun, and be just a little bit silly together!
(And was it ever refreshing to hear other people who roar with laughter as loudly as some of us Lucases! Hey, some other people actually do know how to laugh, after all!)