Christmas Day 2016

I always love how the tree looks when all the gifts are put out!  It looks like a lot, but each kiddo got 4 gifts.

Normally we try to mix in books and clothes with their Christmas gifts, but we didn't do as many toys for birthdays this year (because we did the outside play house).  Each kiddo got a family game we could all play (Hungry Hungry Hippos, Pie in the face, Connect 4, & Pictionary), and the rest were toys we thought they'd enjoy.  For their "big gifts", the girls both an American Girl doll, Hayden got a real bow and arrows, and Austin got a race car track.  

Hayden also got a toy gun and Quixel 3D (it's a set of beads you can build 3d figures with).  Allie got a mommy puppy that has babies in it's belly, and an extra outfit for her doll.  Krissy got shopkins and an extra outfit for her doll.  Austin got a nerf gun and a light up gun.  Seems like we were into dolls and guns this year!

Kevin got me really warm pink gloves for the snow (hoping we get some!), a phone charger to keep in my purse, and a gift certificate to get a pedicure!  I got him a really awesome flashlight. I know that sounds boring, but I'm a really practical gift giver, and he's said a million times over the last 10 years he wished he had a good flashlight.  So, I bought the best one on the market and it should last a long, long time!

The kids were squirming through the Christmas story and were dying to open gifts - I couldn't find my good camera, so Kevin gave me his phone to use.  The pictures aren't the best, but this is all I have from Christmas morning!

Christmas morning my counter was covered in sugar cookies, homemade bread, and breakfast cake!  I also had some "sampler" plates put together to take to friends and family!

After gifts, we got ready for lunch with Kevin's family.  After lunch, we headed to my parents house for an early dinner because my dad had to work that evening.  It's hard to believe, but I didn't hardly get my camera out the whole day!  I snapped a couple pictures of Krissy + Eleanor, so here they are!

(Allie and Krissy had matching dresses that were Christmas gifts from their Mamaw)

We had a Merry Christmas and hope you did as well!

Santa Claus Came to Town!

Friends of ours have a family friend that loves to dress up and play Santa.  She asked if we'd wanted to have a little get-together this year and have Santa show up.  I'm always on board for fun things like that!  I offered to host, we invited our parents, I made some yummy snacks, and we had so much fun!

The punch was a hit!  Sweet and carbonated and the kids loved filling up little punch cups and passing it out!  (Look for the recipe tomorrow!)

Chopped beef cheese ball (also made meatballs that I didn't get pics of!)

Caramels, Gingersnaps, Sugar cookies

Caramel Recipe

Sugar Cookie Recipe 

(The sugar cookies are best if eaten the same day they are made!)

Santa was walking up the drive way and Allie says, "That's not the real Santa.  He has a curly beard and the real Santa doesn't."  I just shushed her, and we welcomed Santa.  After Santa left she wouldn't stop saying "That wasn't the real one!"  He was a very good and sweet Santa... even if he had a curly beard!

The kids each got a hand knitted scarf (made by Stephanie's mom) and a beany baby dog from their Mamaw.  Their Mimi made goody bags they got too!

Garrett wasn't a fan of Santa this year.

Our friends the Sextons!

Kevin and I got scarfs too!  We love them!

Garrett still didn't like Santa!  haha

Cutest little backwards-hat-wearing boy I know.

Christmas Hand Print Craft

It's been a good couple years since we really dove into Christmas crafts, so this year I knew we were over due for something!  I saw this cute craft on Pinterest a few weeks ago and knew I wanted to make a similar one with my kids.  I wanted to do all hand prints, so I knew ours would look a bit different.

The chalk board we had hanging up in the dining area came down last week when Kevin hung my new angel picture.  It was a 24x24 square, and I didn't know what I was going to do with it.  I ended up having Kevin cut in for this project!  

The wood piece we used was 10x24 and fit 4 hand prints perfectly!  I set up a little hand painting station, and got a hand washing station ready.  We stamped hands oldest to youngest, and they all watched me paint on details.  They kept ooing and ahhing when I'd add another detail and it was so cute.

We got to this point in the project and I said out loud, "Hmmm what does it need?"  Hayden commented the sleigh needed a bag and Santa needed to be saying, "Ho Ho Ho."  I thought both suggestions were perfect!

A close up of the Santa

A close up of the reindeer

I did add the year to the back, and I'm trying to decide if I need to add names on the front to the hand prints.. even though they are in order of oldest to youngest!

Kids Christmas Tree

When we set up the "play room" for the kids, I decided it would be a great time to set up a Christmas tree for the kids.  I remember growing up, we had a small tree at the top of the stairs to put our ornaments on, and it was one of my favorite things!  I haven't taken the time to set up a tree filled with the kids ornaments for I'm guessing 3-4 years.

I had a pre-lit artificial tree in the garage, and I knew the lights were dead, but I decided I'd pull it out, take the dead lights off and that could become the kids tree.  I had no idea what an undertaking it was to pick lights off pre-lit trees.  I spent hours working on it (the problem was eachbranch of the tree had two little green snaps that connected the lights to the branches.  Each branch x2 is a lot of little plastic snaps!)  Kevin surprised me with my favorite Starbucks drink and that helped perk me back up.  My fingers were so sore, so when I thought I had finished, I was so excited to get the tree inside (I'd been working in the garage) and get the new lights on.  My joy was short lived because I spotted about 100 lights that I had missed.  But... I got them off, added the new lights, and the tree is beautiful!

I can't say that it was a fun job, but I didn't want to pay for a new tree when I knew the one we had was pretty.  I also decided I'd have a hard time ever buying a pre-lit artifical tree again!

All the ornaments are ones the kids have collected over the years!

Our "angels" on top were made back in 2010 (that was the size of their hands and feet that year!) - so it's probably time to update them and include 2 more angels!  I actually have a sewing project in mind, just don't know that I'll get it done before Christmas!

It's Beninning to Look A lot Like Christmas

Happy December!  It took me longer to get in the Christmas spirit this year than usual.  (Usually November, I'm itching to put out decorations.)  I purchased the Lauren Daigle Christmas CD on iTunes in mid November and that's when I finally felt ready to kick off the holiday season!  Btw, it's a great CD if you're looking to add one to your Christmas music collection!

Since then, I've taken pictures for Christmas cards, ordered & addressed Christmas cards, decorated the house, found some new recipes I want to try, shopped online for gifts, and bought wrapping paper!  I'm certain this really is the best time of the year!  Hope you're enjoying it too!

Here's a look at some of my decorations.  I'm 100% sure less is more... and all of our decorations fit in 3 plastic tubs.  Easy set up, easy take down.  (I haven't put out my Christmas ornaments in years, and will probably wait another year - maybe two - before I get them out.  They are all in a container too, so technically we have more than 3 tubs!)  Also 95% of my decorations are kid friendly - so all the kids helped me decorate and I didn't have to worry about them breaking anything!

One of my favorite nativity sets!  Baby Jesus has been man handled a lot this year by Austin :)

I'm so thankful we have a mantle!  It's one of my favorite things to decorate!

The cutest pair of deer!

I've always adored Annalee cats and the Christmas ones are my favorite!  I've got a little collection I put on top of my china cabinet!  (Along with some really cute trees I got from the Christmas store in Santa Claus!)

Our bear gets a Santa hat.

Hello Beautiful!  Our tree!  The girls and I picked it out the day after Thanksgiving (and got a Starbucks).  We got it from the Boy Scouts and I was really impressed with the service!  It's a Frasier Fir and it's probably the most beautiful tree we've ever had!

Our Christmas 2015

Several weeks ago we went to see Santa!

Our Christmas card picture this year!

Christmas Eve started a little rough for us.  Kevin and I both had head colds that kept us from getting any deep sleep that night .  We felt drained before the day even started, but it didn't keep us from doing most of what we planned.   We took some DayQuil and started on our to-do list.  For me that meant picking up the house and making 100+ sugar cookies.  Kevin had to put together one of the kids toys they were getting that evening from their grandparents and I had him switch Austin's crib to a twin bed that day too.  We chose to pass on our church's Christmas Eve service since we weren't feeling great (because we would have had to take all 4 kids to service with us, and that's never gone smoothly).  We opted to watch a Christmas Eve service from our favorite Elevation Church app instead.  That evening, we hosted dinner for Kevin's parents and I made a pretty easy meal (ham, roasted potatoes, snow peas, corn, crescent rolls).  The kids enjoyed opening their gifts from their mamaw and papaw and spent most of the evening trying out their new heavy-duty teeter totter.

We got a bit more sleep on Christmas morning.  Krissy woke up at 5am and had a conversation with Hayden but they both went back to sleep.  Austin woke up around 6am but fell back asleep.  Allie was the first one out of bed at 7:15 and I heard her little feet run down the hallway.  Once she spotted the gifts under the tree she ran into our bedroom to tell us Santa had come.  We told her to go wake up everyone else, and she happily did!

Allie and Hayden passed out gifts.  Austin stayed close to me and Kevin on the couch and didn't have much interest in opening his gifts.  He seemed to enjoy watching everyone else open theirs.  Krissy almost immediately started eating all the chocolate and candy that was in her stocking, while Allie and Hayden anxiously opened gifts and wanted everything put together right.then.and.there.  We helped Austin open his gifts and then started assembling and unpackaging all the new gifts.

For lunch we headed to Kevin's family's get together.  I brought a spinach/strawberry/pecan salad with raspberry vinaigrette and gingersnaps and sugar cookies for the dessert table.  We had a good time visiting with all his aunts/uncles/cousins/the new babies.  We took the kids home for a nap, but unfortunately no kids took naps.  Austin still wasn't a fan of staying in his new bed, so Kevin decided to lay with him until Austin fell asleep - but Kevin fell asleep and as soon as he did, Austin snuck out of his room and came to the family room to play with me and the other kids.  We ended up going ahead to my parents house to start my family's Christmas.

My dad had worked well into Christmas morning on a stabbing that made the news.  I always like hearing him tell the stories, so when we got to my parents house I wanted to hear all about his night fighting crime haha!  We waited for nieces to arrive and wake up, then we opened gifts and ate a fantastic dinner.  I didn't stuff myself at lunch because I knew I'd want to indulge a little more at dinner!  :)  We all left around 8 o'clock and headed home.  The kids went to sleep easily, which was a great ending to a long, but great day!

Here are some pictures from Christmas Eve & morning!

Austin napping in his new bed that Kevin put together for him.  We've since put up a side rail to help keep him in bed.

Our sweet neighbors are always so thoughtful and remember our kids on Christmas!

Krissy was playing with her neighbor gifts too.  The girls and I dressed up in fancy dresses for the evening :)

I made the kids sock monkey pj pants and did our usual pose in front of the tree before we sent them to bed Christmas Eve!

All the kids camped out in the boys room.  (Austin ended up sleeping in between the girls!)

Santa has arrived!

Both girls got new bikes and Hayden got a new skateboard.  We decided on bigger gifts that were outside toys that we knew would get lots of use! 

Allie opening a box of veterinarian barbies I found at the fall consignment sale.  She had no idea they weren't new! (And what she was holding up was actually an unwrapped box of Barbie bunnies).

Hayden loves playing with money so the little cash register has been one of his favorite gifts!

Another one of Hayden's gifts was a Minecraft lego set.  Krissy got a little beauty set because she insists on watching me do my hair and make up.  She loved it!

Both of the girls got a bird cage and 2 birdies like they requested.

Both girls got new barbies.  The barbie car in the pic came from the same consignment sale I mentioned above!

Austin's "big gift" was this Tonka truck.  He loves it!

Krissy eating her chocolate...

Austin also got a football and matchbox cars and rug with a track to roll his cars around.

The kids wanted to go outside and play on their new teeter totter after all the gifts were opened!  And Austin had an accident in his jammies, which is why he no longer matches the group!