December 2009

Merry Christmas, Everyone!


Believe it or not, I think Brett really is happy to be a part of our family. He just doesn't like cameras, so I am never able to prove it in a photo.... Perhaps that is why I haven't gotten around to sending out Christmas cards with a Christmas letter in a few years. I've been waiting for that perfect family photo. So, this blog post will have to suffice for now, even though it will only cover the month of December--I'm planning to remedy that problem by catching up on the rest of the year soon. Don't hold your breath.

Todd's class panda spent the weekend at our house and was able to witness us decorating the Christmas tree. We let him wear the cuckoo clock's Santa hat, since Brett wouldn't let the reindeer wear it this year. Bummer. I thought it was adorable.

Ryan's preschool did caroling around campus. Todd's class decorated gingerbread houses. Ryan was so happy that he had the day off to participate in that activity.

Uncle Mark had to work on Christmas Day, so we celebrated with the extended family a day early. Oma fixed fondue for dinner, after which we exchanged gifts. We're so lucky to have such good relationships with our family nearby.

There is a lot of love in this pile of cool-looking cousins, even if it is not immediately evident.

Copper loves extended family as well, and Ginger will always have a soft spot for her original master, Brett.

Papa (who is always cold) received what he calls a "sleeping pill" for Christmas. He won't last long watching TV when he wears his monk-Snuggie.

On Christmas Eve the family, including Uncle Kevin and Aunt Jenni, got together again at my house for our annual Christmas Eve activity. I tried something new this year by having the family play musical Christmas gifts. I wrapped two presents in multiple layers of paper. We passed the gifts around, taking turns unwrapping the presents whenever the music stopped. I thought it was quite fun. Here are the two winners with their prizes (a Hershey's Symphony bar and a Christmas fleece blanket).

After the eating and the fun we watched a short movie on the Nativity and read the Christmas story from the New Testament. I printed out the scriptures in sections and cut them out so we could have more people involved in reading. Spending Christmas Eve this way is something that I absolutely love doing.

Santa and Mrs. Claus were delayed in visiting our house that night because they were quite busy and it was pouring down rain. By the time they made it to our house the rest of the family was gone and the boys were tucked into bed. They were not asleep however, so Santa and Mrs. Claus came and wished them a Merry Christmas in their rooms. I was happy that we were still able to see the man in the big red suit, but I was sorry that we did not get to take a photo with them.

The tree and stocking are ready for Christmas morning.

We started opening presents with our small family at 7:00am. Aunt Donna stopped by for little while, but for most of the morning it was just the four of us. We had fun taking time to open gifts and play with them as much as we wanted before moving on to the next gift. We weren't finished opening presents until almost noon. By then it looked like we had been hit by a tornado.

The kitchen didn't look so hot either, and it took me a few days before I felt like there was order again.

We are blessed in so many ways. And even though Ryan didn't get his Easy Bake Oven...

...I think both he and Todd would agree that it was a wonderful Christmas!

A few days after Christmas the boys and I went to see the lights around the lake in Defuniak Springs with our friends Beth and Tia. It was a nice way to finish out the holiday season.

Lastly, I want to thank all of our friends and family who remembered us this year. I loved hearing from you and seeing how your families have grown. Please don't take me off your Christmas lists.

I hope you enjoyed a happy holiday season as well!