Morning Madness

 The moment arrived......

 A kitty!!!!!!

 And a scooter!!!!!

After attending a wonderful church meeting, we came home and got back in our pajamas to open presents (but not before documenting the family in festive Christmas attire).

Tyler enjoyed his tractors from Santa. Glad to add to the boy toys around here.... And here begins the morning madness! Mike and I decided to have a small Christmas this year, until my parents  doubled the pile!

The stockings were really fun. I don't think the girls could have been much happier about Tinkerbell and Hello Kitty pez, tons of candy, nail polish, hair bows, and art supplies.

Ty Ty got his first tie! Now I need to get a white shirt to go with it.

Then on to some unwrapping! Grandma went for gold with the Hello Kitty house.

Maddie COULD NOT WAIT to see what was in this long present from Grandma.

A long coveted pogo stick!! She has been asking for this for a long time, and I always tell her when she's older. She's a little light for it still, but I guess she'll grow into it.

Mike's first gift... to tease him about how grumpy he was when I bought cheap toilet paper. :)

  And his favorite gift, to complete his cold weather biking ensemble.

Tyler looked soooooo cute in his new froggy hat, even though it made him sad!

With a little binki action and another box to grab at, he was back to his big grins.

I think my favorite gift was when Maddie ran up to her room and brought down something she has been hiding under her bed for a week. It was a note that said "Dear Mom and Dad, I want you to know that I wish you a Merry Christmas." She sounded it out and wrote it herself (my mom calls it inventive spelling). Now I know why my parents always said handmade gifts were their favorite!

The aftermath. Wow. May I insert here that this Christmas I have been acutely aware of how blessed we are. Not only abundantly, but perhaps overabundantly.

Of course playing ensued... and pogo-ing. Mike couldn't resist, and then helped Maddie.

After some naps and cooking (I made my first turkey!!!) we had the Andrews family over again for a sit down Christmas dinner. My house smelled like turkey, oranges, cloves, and cinnamon and I think that's what heaven smells like.

For entertainment we did three different white elephant exchanges for young, middle, and old ages. We also skyped with Mike's sister in CT and had a "virtual gift exchange", sharing links to what we wish we could give each other. It was pretty entertaining. 

 

I caught a video of one of our white elephant offerings. I got the idea from a neighbor and it was a hit! Pretty funny if I can say so myself.

 

It was a wonderful day... and I didn't want it to end... until 11 pm when my kids were still running in circles.... and then I was ready for my bed. We loved our first Christmas at "HOME"!

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve began with some white beards in the bathtub.

We had family over for a Christmas Eve feast of delicious soups and sandwiches, apples and caramel, and veggies and dip.

After eating we costumed all the kids and re-enacted the Nativity. Mary (Korinne) even rode the donkey (Jonathon) to the inn, and I think we covered every character imaginable. Maddie was a sheep and Ella was the Star. Grandma and Grandpa shared their testimonies and the spirit was strong and sweet.


Everyone went home a bit early for their own family traditions. We watched one of my favorite combinations-- the Nativity movie by the church with "Breath of Heaven" by Amy Grant. Never fails to make me cry. I love looking at the situation from Mary's point of view, and I think it's especially meaningful to me now that I am a mother.




Then we made a plate for Santa and the reindeer.

To end the night we gathered around the tree to open our customary Christmas Eve gifts of pajamas and Christmas books!

Off to bed!

The Maddie Christmas Show

Last night was Maddie's preschool concert, and let me tell you it was SOOOOO CUTE!!!! They sang lots of Christmas songs and did a funny little skit with lines at the microphone. Maddie was super nervous about it at home and told me I needed to tell Ms. Tina she didn't want to talk in the microphone. But when we got there, either she got brave or she will do anything for Ms. Tina (truth), but she did it! Her little friend in the skirt even did a darling solo. It's so great to see these little 4 year olds learn so much and overcome their fears!

Another fear--SANTA. Maddie loves the idea of Santa, but hates sitting on his lap. Last year was better with lots of coercing, but this year she jumped in line without me knowing it, and luckily I looked over in time to grab a shot with the camera! She was blushing crimson but she did it. 

She also had a Christmas performance at dance last week.  They showed us all they have been learning. Skips (above), gallops, slides, positions (below)...

And this is her great leap!  They look to that picture on the back wall for inspiration, and Maddie is getting pretty good! 

They did a dance for us to a Nutcracker song, which I recorded but it's too long to post. She has learned so much this year and is really retaining it!

Little Miss Ella can't wait to dance too. She tried on Maddie's old dance clothes and thinks she should be able to go to class now that she is 3. The little girl on the end (above) is also 3 and I'm sure Ella would love it, but I'm not sure I'm ready to start paying for two! She just wants to keep up with her big sister!

Dreaming of a White Christmas

We got our first and only snow as a surprise! Mr. Eubanks said the storm would miss us, but we woke up to a (thin) white blanket over everything. I didn't realize how much I missed the snow, but it doesn't feel like Christmas without it!

I let the girls run around while I shoveled the driveway. I should've known they would go all out and want to make snow angels. They were soaked but it was a lesson to me to live in the moment!

Ella wanted to lick and eat it. I tried not to worry, even though the smog has been so bad this week.... ew.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Activity Advent

 

One of our many Christmas advents is to do an activity as a family (we also have to remember to turn Santa's buttons, take an ornament out of a mitten, glue a cotton ball on Santa's beard, and eat a chocolate kiss). It provides a chance to continue or create traditions together. I'm behind on sharing pictures of Christmas stuff, so it's going to be a bunch!

Day 1 was the Polar Express re-enactment at preschool and the book. Day 2 we tried to find a living nativity, but never made it. (Last year we went to the one in the Provo Tabernacle, but since the fire we didn't know if they would do it outside and could never get enough information from the city. I did hear about this neat one in Alpine--maybe next year!)

 

Day 3 we went to buy our tree! I absolutely love this tradition my family has done since I can remember.

There's nothing like running through the fresh trees, playing hide and seek and trying to find the perfect one.

 That Saturday was spent stringing lots of lights, inside and out.

We had to trim quite a bit off the top to fit our star. The girls had so much fun hanging the ornaments. I love having the tree up... the fragrance and light really make it feel like Christmas!

Day 4 we wrote letters to Santa. The girls absolutely love anything related to paper, pens, stickers, and envelopes.

Day 5 we went to the American Fork Symphony concert, where Mike's brother John performed on the cello, and Maddie's dance company performed parts of the Nutcracker. It was so fun for the girls to see big ballerinas.

Santa even stopped by at the end and directed the audience in singing Jingle Bells!

We did a few things that I don't have pictures of... Day 6 we watched a sweet Christmas movie (made from this book) and ate popcorn. Day 8 we made a craft, and I'd tell you more about it but it's a gift!

Day 7 Mike played Christmas carols on his trumpet and we sang to Grandpa Andrews via Skype.

Day 9 we visited a cousin who is in bed recovering from surgery. Day 10 we went for a family swim at the Legacy center, always a favorite!

Day 11 we braved the cold and visited Temple Square to see the lights.

 It was beautiful, but Ella literally turned blue with cold.

We were only able to send Christmas cards to family this year, but we hope all of you good friends out there are having happy holidays!