T-minus 8 days!!!

I guess I can just write a quick update to let you all know what's been going on---
After the Kids' Christmas Party last weekend, we decided to buy clothes for all the kids so Jamie, Emily and I went to Target Wednesday morning and bought at least one new outfit for all the kids that came to the party! It was soooo much fun shopping for all the kids!!!
Friday night we celebrated Christmas with the girls in Camden! We did a white elephant secret Santa- I luckily picked Joanne, so I had a lot of fun finding fun presents around the Inn and Bennie's! We had a good time; it was very low-key, but a nice way to celebrate this wonderful time with them.
Saturday I spent the day working on the Inn newsletter getting the house ready for our Team Christmas party which was yesterday. My friends from school (Marcus, Stef and Katie- people that were on my SBA trip last March) arrived Saturday afternoon to avoid the snow that the northeast got pummeled with Sunday. It's been so great having them here, especially because they know how the Inn works and are very competent! Emily also left Saturday to go visit her boyfriend and will return late Wednesday night.
Sunday was the craziest day! I was on deliveries with Fred, which is more fun than you can even imagine! He's so fun and just a great guy to be around! After that, I had a few things to take care of, some final preparations for the Christmas party, and then was able to do our Team Secret Santa with a clear mind! We had some delicious food that everyone brought, each member of the Team brought an ornament to decorate our tree with and then we started our Secret Santa gift exchange! The trick of it is, about 2 weeks ago we each picked a name to get a gift for. I had Brother Xavier who, to everyone else, was easy to get something for. He's the kind of guy that would be happy with anything you gave him. But I wanted to give him something he'd use and like. Sooooo, after a lot of deliberation, I made him a tshirt with a Saint Francis quote "It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching" and then a picture of him and me on it! Everyone loved it! When I got my gift, it was a really cute ornament and then a really cool bowl from Peru... I guessed every single person in the room until I finally rested on Brother John, the person I had put off the longest because I just didn't believe it was him. Actually, I thought Fr. Michael was my secret Santa! What a surprise! It was a lot of fun to hang out with the Team outside of work, although I definitely missed having Emily here!
I will be going home Wednesday after the breakfast shift with Marcus, Katie and Stef! I've got a busy few days at home and will return to Philadelphia the afternoon of Christmas Eve to spend the holiday with the guests and people here. It'll be tough, I'm sure, but I'm eager to see just what it's like to be here for the holidays!
Thank you for your continued support! May the peace and love of the holiday season rest in your hearts!