Christmas!

So, we made it through 3 Christmases, and it reminds me of how blessed we are to have so much family here, such great friends, and how wonderful it is to spend the holidays with them all.

We started with Christmas Eve at our house... my parents, Jonathan's parents, my two cousins and both their families, my aunt and uncle, my brother, 2 family friends, and my grandma all came over. It was a packed house, but the more the Merrier. Zoe was decked out in her Christmas finest, while Hayden chose to discretely wear red and green. The kids were going bonkers until we finally opened presents at 7:30ish. After, my cousin had a game for the adults to play... 3rd year in row. Tons of fun! This year, we had to wrap presents with a partner, each of us only using one hand. Then, we were voted on who had the best wrapping job and the winners actually won a prize. Guess who won?? Yours truly! My partner Kathy (family friend) and I each won $25 to Harkins AND $25 to Olive Garden. Whoo Hoo... Date Night! Then, we opened the presents that we all wrapped. At first glance it was just a package of Krispy Kringles.... but, hidden with more gift cards to places like Subway. How Cool! Wonder what next year's game will be...

Then, my parents and brother stayed the night to join us in the morning. The kids did stocking stuffers, then we had our traditional biscuits and gravy, fried potatoes, and fruit. Jonathan's parents came also. Then we did the whole present thing... tons of fun!

Last, we had Christmas day dinner at our house. Hayden had to go back to his mom's but got to celebrate anothe Christmas over there. Jonathan's parents brought over a prime rib and ham, while we had some left overs from the night before... plus salad from his grandparents. AND, Miss Tammy came back for a visit with her whole family. They've taken over our house, but that's ok! The kids, and us, were spoiled rotten this Christmas... geez!

Happy Christmas Eve

I'm so excited for today... we have my whole family coming over plus Jonathan's parents. Hayden will be here momentarily and Zoe is so excited. I love Christmas Eve!!
Merry Christmas everyone!!

Counting down

Christmas time is almost here... my shopping is just about done... except for some odds and ends, and who knows what else I find (which I shouldn't find because then I would contradict the whole point of this post). I'm very smart at my Christmas savings... I put away a little each month so when it's time to buy gifts, we don't go broke and we have it ready and waiting. BTW... I could buy some great things for the house or ME with what I save all year. And, the kids are getting older which means gifts cost more. Like this year... Hayden was SO hard to buy for and he's only 9!

It seems though that each year I spend more than what was budgeted (budget smudget) and then I freak out. NONE of the Christmas songs encourage going broke and saving all year. They chant about joy and a red nosed reindeer and Christ! What happens to the spirit of Christmas when all we do is shop shop shop. And what about the economy? It is said that since the economy is so bad, that Americans will ONLY spend about $450 billion this year on Christmas. BILLION!! Now, don't get me wrong... I shop just as good as the next person, however sometimes it's just in an effort to keep up with the rest. What if we all slowed down, spent less, focussed more on what the celebration is meant to be? How about money limits less that what they are now? Or make it for the kids? Hmm... next year, perhaps...

Gingerbread house...

Last year we started the "tradition" of decorating a gingerbread house.
This year Jonathan made the frosting... ha ha ha

Christmas Party

So, our church always promotes having a Christmas party for our neighbors to get to know them, then at the end invite them to Christmas Eve service. They even hand out a fabulous little party in a box that includes invitations and a dvd packed with ideas for games, recipes, etc. Hayden was with us one day when the pastor promoted this. He was on board in no time and took a box.

Well, unbeknown to us, he started filling out invitations and handing them out to his neighborhood friends. Well... guess who showed up last night! LOL... Jonathan was playing guitar hero in his pj's and I was just getting home from a little trip to the store... and we have nothing planned. Or I should say, Hayden had nothing planned. There they all were with poor little Zoe trying to keep up in her summer tank dress and black patent leather shoes ... her "ballet shoes". So, we quickly pooled our resources and found a frozen pizza, chicken, potatoes, green beans, and apples.... I know, seriously? The kids raved about the "homemade" pizza... (whatever.. thank you diagorno) and said the apples were the best ever. What nice kids! Then we had them make our homemade cup ornaments. Haven't seen them? See pics and directions below... Anyway, the "party" was a success and it was topped off with ice cream at the end. Fun times! Good idea Hayden!

Cup Ornaments
"Ingredients":

• plastic tumbler cups (the kind that would crack/break if you squeezed them)
• plastic beads (the clearish colored ones look best)
• nail
• pliers
  
• candle
• thin ribbon or ornament hanger
  

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place beads inside cup... OR... put cup upside down and put the beads on top. Put them on a baking sheet and bake for about 5 min... or until they are flatish. After they have cooled, using the pliers, heat up the nail over the candle and poke a hole through the ornament. Use the ribbon or ornament hanger to put through the hole.

They are very unique and mess free!

The Next Guitar Hero

Check out Zoe playing Guitar Hero.... Classic!

Polar Express

We donned our pajamas and headed North for the Polar Express this weekend. Even Jonathan wore some jammies. My grandma and mom went, so that added even more to the enjoyment. This was our first time and I'm sure not our last. The kids, even Hayden, were excited to see Santa. The idea of Santa is very appealing to Zoe, and possibly even exciting. However, anytime he gets within a 5 foot radius she becomes a mute and hides her head in the closest armpit. Combined with my accidental hair pulling of her, her bashing her head into Jonathan's mouth, her catching her cheek on the chain outside the train, and her banging her head on the seat arm, things could have been worse. Notice her scowl when Santa is near...and our first family picture... no happiness from her. However, Hayden was a saint and did great.

First family pic...

In awe over the train

So cute!

Hmm... not so excited about Santa

Grandma will save me...Cute... and too many cookies

Best pic we could get of them... Hayden of course looks great, and Zoe is giving an evil look.

No... we didn't stick our heads out the window!

With Grandma and Great Grandma

Another family pic... at least she's not crying

The next day in Flagstaff, we headed towards the Riordan Mansion... a Flagstaff historic state park. It's very cool if you are into history and antiques... and an adult. We bought our tickets for the tour, even after the tour guide so "kindly" stated that it wasn't really suited for kids even though we sell tickets. Great, we'll take both of our kids and they will be great, especially my 3 year old... she's not like the other ones. Then, we were joined by another couple who had a 2 and 4 year old. Good, Zoe will be an angel compared to those other two. So... to make a long story short, the other two were promptly and not so kindly asked to leave because they would ruin the tour... Ahh... see, told you Zoe would be better. Oops, just kidding. We (as in Zoe and I) left about 5 min. after them and headed to the nearest McDonald's to enjoy their playland. Hmm... much more fun for Zoe I must say. And the grouchy tour guide was satisfied. Whatever! We did sneak back and take some outdoor pictures. We can take the pine cones, right??Yes! Finally! A family pic that works!

Brownies

Hayden is such a great big brother, and he loves to cook. Combined, he makes great brownies and lets his little sister lick the spoon... or in this case, the whisk.

I'm Freezin'

So, Zoe's new line....
"I'm freezin' my balls off!"

Great... thanks Hayden and Jonathan.