Mattie's 5th Christmas

Dear Mattie,

Merry Christmas and happy 4 1/2 year birthday!  We celebrated another Christmas without you.   A lot has happened to our little family since last year.  We moved to another house in another town in another state and have been adjusting to being so far away from you and the rest of our family.  We haven't been able to visit you this year like we usually do.  Your family has visited you and put flowers on your grave for your birthday and other holidays.  We really miss having you here with us at Christmas and every day.  At almost 5 years old, I know you would be getting so grown up and wanting to do more big girl things.  You would be preparing for kindergarten and may be going to pre-k at your big brothers' school.  We wanted to see you open your presents along with your brothers and see your little face light up with joy and excitement.  We wanted you to be a part of our family pictures and memories.  We wanted to see you enjoying Disney World with your brothers and know you would have loved to do all the princess stuff.  It is getting harder to imagine what you would want for Christmas since I can't know you here on earth.  I know in heaven none of these things really matter, but they matter to us down here because they are just another reminder that you aren't here.  Watching Mattox and Grayson playing together so well shows me how much you would likely have loved your brothers.  I think you and Brody would have been very close since you were the closest in age.  He was so excited to get you.  I know you are watching over us all, and I hope you enjoy sharing in our traditions.  We love you and will never forget you.  We will likely have many more years of missing you here with us.  For now, here is how we honored and remembered you this Christmas: 

Our family pictures never feel complete without you. 

You would have worn matching pajamas with us. 

I know you would have loved the Christmas tree and helped decorate it. 

Your special ornaments, little tree, stocking, and picture are still my favorite decorations. 

We finally got to visit you and take you some new flowers after Christmas. 

It was your baby brother's first visit. 

All of us together. 

I love all 5 of my babies! 

Daddy and Cocoa love you too. 

You would need some elf pajamas to match your brothers' other Christmas pajamas. 

A new Christmas dress for you. 

I don't know if you would need a sweater dress too much here, but it has been pretty cold this month. 

You could definitely wear this one more around here with a little sweater if it turned chilly. 

For presents, you may have wanted an American Girl doll. 

Barbie dolls would probably also be a hit.  I love these "professional" dolls. 

More barbies. 

And barbie clothes. 

And a Barbie house too. 

We hope you enjoyed your Christmas in heaven watching over us again!

Love,

Mommy