Snow Day...

The Saturday after Christmas it snowed.  Not a lot.  But enough.  Enough to make snow angels and our Frosty Jr.

Addi loved it.  Our Frosty had eyes, nose, and mouth out of peanut M&MS, he had a red scarf, and wore Daddy’s toboggan.

He was little but he was perfect.  Throughout the day, Addi would run to look out the back door to check on our Frosty.  “Frosty didn’t melt,” she would announce!

Christmas Day...

Christmas morning came and I was the only one awake—I woke up around 6 and was ready to get everyone up and get the party started.  I tried to make myself go back to sleep but couldn’t so I got up, made coffee, and just sat on the couch staring at the beautiful tree and reflecting on the blessings we had received.  I was grateful for that peaceful time that I had on Christmas morning (which is so very rare).  At 7:30, I decided it was time to get everyone up so I did!  The face of a two-year old on Christmas morning is worth it all. 

Austin got a new North Face jacket, jeans, shirts, Rascal Flatts concert tickets, socks, and skin care stuff.  Addi got pink, sparkly boots (which she had asked Santa for), tan boots, Disney priness books with an e-reader, Leap Frog Phonics, Max and Ruby plush animals, Disney Princess purse, doctor kit, pink Columbia jacket, clothes, princess tiara and shoes, princess puzzles, and princess crocs.  It’s funny how inexpensive her stuff is compared to Austin’s!  I guess I better enjoy it while I can!  Craig got me some charms for my charm bracelet, new baking sheets, a gift certificate for a pedicure, new tennis shoes, and a Columbia jacket.  I got him a skil saw, new tennis shoes, and a shirt.

It was a great Christmas at home!  Then we had to get cleaned up to go to Mom and Dad’s house to have Christmas breakfast and then open gifts over there.

It was nice to have my parents, grandparents, aunt, brother, sister and the rest of our families all together but that makes for quite a crowd!  Mom and Dad were cooking a big breakfast for all of us—bacon, eggs, sausage, hashbrowns, gravy, and biscuits.  It was wonderful as always! 

After breakfast, we sang Happy Birthday to Baby Jesus and then the mayhem of present opening began!  Because the kids are so little, it’s impossible to get them to open gifts one a time so it turns into a free-for-all!  Addi got a huge stuffed teddy bear (as big as she is) and a Minnie Mouse tea set from Mom and Dad as well as a savings bond.  Austin got a director’s chair from them and a savings bond.  Addi also got a stuffed Minnie Mouse and Daisy Duck from the Mastin’s as well as Minnie Mouse utensils.  Austin got jeans and a shirt from the Mastin’s. 

She also got an Etch-a-sketch from Mamaw Pogue (GG).  Austin got an iTunes card. 

We stayed over there all day until we left to go back to the Vahle’s at 5 for dinner that evening.  Addi was so anxious to just GO BACK TO OUR HOUSE so that she could play with all of her new stuff! 

We had a great dinner at the Vahle’s and then picked up GG and took her back to our house to spend the night with us.  We stayed up late playing cards while Addi enjoyed playing with her new toys!

It was a busy day but a wonderful day.

Christmas Eve...

I love traditions and bringing up our children with the same traditions.  We do our gift exchange on the Vahle side on Christmas Eve evening.  Instead of having a meal, we indulge on appetizers that everyone brings.  This year, I took sausage balls, buffalo chicken dip, and cherry fluff dessert.  There is always way too much food but we seem to say that every year with the intention of making less the next year! 

After eating the kids were anxious to open their gifts.  Addi got to begin since she was the most anxious and the youngest!  It was so cute because we would tell her who it was from before she opened it and she would have this adorable look of surprise on her face and then run over and give hugs and say thank you before even opening the gift!  She got a Baby Alive and a pack of diapers for Baby Alive from Aunt Lisa and Uncle James.  She also got a giant Barbie sticker book, finger nail polish set, coloring books, and bath stuff from Aunt Dee and Uncle Tag.  From Nina and Papaw she got a Disney Princess dress up trunk with 5 different dress up outfits, a board that she can write on with water-filled markers, and (the gift that was the BIGGEST hit of all the gifts she received the whole Christmas) a pair of red, glittery Dorothy shoes!  She WAS ENAMORED by these shoes.  It was hilarious.  She instantly wanted to put them on never took them off until she went to bed that night!  She really loves to watch the movie “The Wizard of Oz”—it’s so funny because how many 2-year olds like that movie?  Anyway, she prissed around all night modeling her shoes and would repeatedly say, “Look at my beautiful Dorothy shoes.  Aren’t they beautiful?”  She would walk around just staring at them.  It was the funniest thing—she amazes me at her girlyness! 

Austin got a pea coat with a scarf and an American Eagle gift card from Nana and Papaw.  He got some cologne and gift certificates for car washes from the Bartram’s and a gift card from Aunt Dee and Tag.

After leaving there, we stopped by my sister’s house to enjoy some time with my parents and my grandparents and aunt (who were all in from Louisville).  My sister had cooked dinner (which we missed) and everyone was just hanging out socializing and playing cards.

It was late when we got home from my sister’s house and Santa and I had a lot of preparations to tend to before Christmas morning so we hurriedly got Addi to get Santa’s milk and cookies set out as well as the pictures that she had painted for Santa Christmas Eve morning!  

We prepared Addi by telling her that when Santa came to bring presents he would be picking up our Elf and taking her back with him.  She wasn’t real happy about that, telling us that she would really miss her elf Tye (which is what she named our GIRL elf after Uncle Jackie’s dog).

We read "Twas the Night Before Christmas" and then off to bed it was!