...[cont]

The Eighth Day of Christmas: "Charity: Bible Definition - The highest, noblest, strongest kind of love, not merely affection; the pure love of Christ. It is never used to denote alms or deeds of benevolence, although it may be a prompting motive."

We received books, a worthy addition to any family's house. There was a mixture of books for the very young and books for the merely young.

The Ninth Day of Christmas: "This principle of love is the basic essence of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Without love of God and love of neighbor there is little else to commend the gospel to us as a way of life." - Pres Gordon B. Hinckley

We received an assortment of card and board games, which is great if you (like us) are a game-playing sort of family.

The Tenth Day of Christmas: "As I have loved you, Love one another. This new commandment: Love one another. By this shall men know Ye are my disciples, If ye have love One to another." - Music and lyrics by Luacine Clark Fox

We received a nice assortment of movies, varied in their themes and level of religious content. Most appreciated by the kids were the Veggietales movies (neither of which we already owned). Alison and I are big fans of Studio C, and were glad to receive seasons 1 and 2. Other videos are, of course, honorably mentioned.

The Eleventh Day of Christmas: "When we keep the spirit of Christmas, we keep the Spirit of Christ, for the Christmas spirit is the Christ spirit. It will block out all the distractions around us which can diminish Christmas and swallow up its true meaning." - Pres Thomas S. Monson

We received an assortment of flashlights, freeze-dried foods, and shelter materials for use in an emergency. We are always happy to build on our emergency preparedness supplies, and this was an unexpected and welcome addition to our stash.

The Twelfth Day of Christmas: "Your family is loved by so many people and we wanted to express how important you are as individuals, a couple, and an entire family. Even through trial and struggle, you have been an example to us. Merry Christmas!" - Your Secret Santa

We received a lovely and solid 10-inch copy of the Christus statue, which now resides atop our piano by our family pictures and hand casts.

We are overwhelmed by the generosity of so many people we do not (and probably will not ever) know. Thank you so much for your attention. We were all excited to open each day's gift and they all arrived in time for Christmas.