Merry Christmas 2012

The kids slept in until 6:40, which was glorious!  We woke everyone up and then lined up by age b/c it’s tradition.

Autumn got 3 gifts from Santa (b/c Baby Jesus only got 3 presents) and Santa leaves them out/unwrapped w/ her stocking so she knows they’re hers.  She got this awesome doll house w/ an elevator, stairs, and storage underneath.  She also got a rainbow unicorn Dream Lite and a kitchen Barbie.

Autumn didn’t seem too excited about the dollhouse, so Lexie came over and gave it her best effort to play Barbies and have fun and make it seem cool.  We later figured out Autumn didn’t seem to like it b/c she has croup and was feeling horrible.

We got these ADORABLE handmade scarfs from Aunt Jeri.  I am not much of a scarf person, but I LOVE mine and will be wearing it a lot.  I like all the ruffles and how cute and feminine it is.  It’s a complete coincidence how our scarves matched our new nightgowns perfectly.

  Mom had these cute printables made for each of the kids.  It says:

I am a child of God
THEIR NAME

And He has sent me here
DATE OF BIRTH

Has given me an earthly home
WHERE THEY LIVE

With parent(s) kind and dear
NAME OF PARENT(S)

The present that was nostalgic and made Lexie emotional this year was this Tupperware container full of Friendship Tea mix.  Mom told Lexie that it had been warped in the dishwasher and that she threw it away.  So, when Lexie opened this gift she was so happy b/c she LOVES Friendship Tea and we’ve always  had it in this container.  She also got this huge purple mug and notice her sporting her big purple bling ring that Autumn & I gave her.

I saw this cute pink coat w/ white fur at the $1 Spot in Target and just knew I had to get it for Emma.  She did NOT like it, but I made her wear it so I could get a picture of her in it.

Jackson, on the other hand, looks FABULOUS in the coat that Emma didn’t want.  LOL!

No, Mom did not turn into a kitchen alien and grow a whisk out of the back of her head.  That’s one of those scalp massager things and she loved it so much that she put it in her hair and left it there.  It really does feel so incredible and gives you tingilies all over your body.

The way you can tell a child is really sick…they lay down on the floor and take a nap while opening Christmas gifts!  Mom gave me this super soft and fuzzy blanket that feels like lamb’s wool and Autumn took it and rolled up in it and promptly went to sleep.  Look at all the fun presents we have and how full that black trash bag is.  We had TWO of those full of wrapping paper, and we weren’t even done yet.  Poor Autumn girl!!!

After we had opened all the presents and shown each other what we got, Mom & I did scrapple while Dad & Jon & Nick helped the kids open the packaging on their toys.  I put too much oil this year, so the scrapple was deep fried instead of lightly fried.  We also had the luscious and rich hot chocolate from Pioneer Woman.  I’m so glad we have scrapple for Christmas every year.

We got breakfast cleaned up and then played w/ the kids and had a fun and relaxing morning.  In the afternoon, we started to get some rain.  Then it turned into a sleet mix.  Next thing we know, it was snowing and a little bit was sticking to the ground!  The kids ran outside to try and catch some on their tongues.

An hour later, this is what it looked like!  We had accumulated a bunch of snow.  Andrew wanted to go have a snowball fight, but it was windy and way too cold.  He and Jon threw a few snowballs and then came running in the house to get warm.  We were so happy to have a White Christmas!

We worked on a puzzle I got for Christmas and then that afternoon we had rib eye roast, yum yum potatoes, and cabbage.  It was quite the feast and I was so thankful to be in a nice warm house surrounded by family.  This simple thing is probably my favorite moment from today.

Dad was so happy to see 2 red cardinals and some other birds out at the bird feeders.  We sat and watched them for quite a while.

Can you spot the red cardinal hiding in this tree? 

Autumn had been begging ALL DAY to have Aunt Lexie put make up on her, and finally Aunt Lexie had time to do it.  Autumn thought she was so super fancy w/ her smoky eye make up.

We were tired of watching basketball, and we wished they would show football.  So, we got out the dominoes to play Mexican Train.

The kids were also getting restless and wanted to play a game.  So, we got out Headbandz, which I gave Autumn for Christmas.  It was a super fun game and the kids didn’t quite understand how it worked, so we would give them hints as to what they are.  That is a game we will be playing a lot!

I got this super cute/fun/sassy puzzle for Christmas so we spent most of the evening putting it together.  The borders were really fun and then the most difficult part were the big words in the middle b/c the letters were so big that they didn’t fit on one piece.  Mary & Curt came over to hang out for a while and say hi.  Mary helped us finish the puzzle.  My favorite saying on this one is “flip flops make your toes feel like they’re on vacation.”  I really like this puzzle.

It was so fun to see the lights on the bushes shining underneath the snow.  It was a WONDERFUL Christmas, and the only thing that could have made it better would be to have Nate home.

I’m thankful for my Savior and that He was willing to come to Earth to experience what it is like to be human so that He knows how to comfort me.  I’m thankful that He was willing to come to Earth to atone for me and all the mistakes that I make.  It’s an honor to celebrate His birthday today!