One week before Christmas, I heard my daughter laughing in the living room: “We’ll just dump all 8 kids on Mom and go relax on vacation.” On the evening of December 24th, when the kids showed up rolling their suitcases inside, my daughter called in a panic: “Mom, where are you? Everyone’s waiting for dinner, presents… and our free babysitter.” I said one sentence that left the entire family frozen on the spot.
A week before Christmas, I was in the kitchen making coffee when I heard voices coming from the living room….