Merry, Merry Christmas

Our Christmas celebration started on Christmas Eve. We had the kids perform their very first nativity. Bekah immediately volunteered to be Mary. Kelsey wanted to be the angel. John was chosen to be the wise man (he argued that there were three...we don't have enough for three people!). And Jack was...riding the rocking horse/donkey. Joe just sat and watched. Ah well.

After that, the kids opened their gifts from Macher. They loved the coloring books, jacket, gloves, and Jack did NOT want to give up his brand new underwear! Not even to let Mommy wash it so he could wear it in the morning. It's the little things that make them excited!

After setting out all of the presents after small people were asleep, Mommy and Daddy were given their first gift from the kids: Joe slept through the night! Ahh...and the rest of the kids didn't get up until 0700. Ahhhh...peace! But the kids got up and got a neat little surprise in the kitchen and then for their stockings (which they opened before breakfast).

Thanks to Grandma Yvonne and Grand Grammy for the dishes on the table. I remember eating out of these when Grammy lived on 1 Horseshoe Lane. I can almost remember the smell of the house and waking up to the early morning fog...but enough of that...thanks for the nostalgia! The kids love the cups and plates too! Thanks for the stocking stuffers too, Grandma Yvonne!

And now...to break things down by kid:

JOHN!!! He loved his race cars, tools, and building set! Oh my goodness. The squealing we got off him from the Criss cross racetrack...joy! Here's to loads of racing and building!

Just look at that kid! Oh, and Great Grams, we loved how John's jammies matched the wrapping paper on his gifts! That was awesome! Thanks a bunch!

Now, KELSEY:

I just realized we don't have as many pictures of Kelsey and her gifts. Crazy! She must have dashed off to play with them before we got any of her. I did get her to pose with her newly decorated jewelry box. Thanks, Grams! This was an awesome idea! She loved designing and decorating stuff to make it her own. And now she's got a place to store some of her new bracelets and necklaces. Thanks so much!

Bekah:

She was the first one dressed in the morning. She couldn't wait to get into her new Christmas dress. And all of the accessories went well with her new dress too! She was so excited about her new jewelry box too! We got it all decorated for her. She did some of the work and Kelsey pitched in to help as well. Thanks for the awesome gifts!

Jack:

He tried opening everyone's gifts. Things just weren't moving fast enough for him. Enough of the one-by-one opening gifts. Let's get things done! But he loves his train and tools. He's been fixing his Tonka truck every chance he can. Thanks so much for the gifts!

Don't touch other's gifts, Jack! "Oh, man!"

And finally, Joe:

We didn't get as many of him because he decided to take a nap most of the way through opening gifts. I guess that's okay since Jack got to open some of Joe's. But it's kinda hard to get pictures of him opening gifts if he's not around. Ah well. First Christmas for Joe! And he got some awesome gifts. Thank you!

Aren't I cute?! And so warm too!

Shawn and I didn't get any pictures of ourselves (go figure!) opening presents, but we feel truly blessed. We had a wonderful Christmas and hope you all had a memorable one as well. In the days to come, we'll try to get pictures of the kids enjoying their new toys even more. Thank you all for your love and support. We love you!

Christmas 2009

We felt very blessed as a family this year. We shared time with wonderful friends, ate tasty treats, and we weren't sick at all! What a gift! We would like to thank everyone who made our Christmas a memorable one this year! Thank you so much for your love and support!

And without further ado...the pictures! I hope they bring a smile to your heart as much as they brought laughter to our home!

The stockings were stuffed with goodies like Pop Rocks, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and clementines! Oh the joy of new toothbrushes and their own tube of special kid toothpaste! WOW! Such lucky kids! They also got "warm" goodies like cocoa with marshmallows and Jack is modeling his new rice bag (he has yet to try it out but the other kids have already tried theirs!).

Speaking of Jack, he slept through the excitement of the day and woke to enjoy all of his presents unwrapped for him. He didn't have to do a thing! The kids got to love some of his toys for him first, but that's alright. They were just "breaking" them in for him.

Bekah was loving her toys! She loved her tea set (which we named a hot cocoa set since she was given cocoa for Christmas too). I think she was the most excited about her bicycle and wanted to ride it as soon as possible.

Kelsey fell in love with everything! She got lots of princess stuff (puzzles, games, bubbles, etc) but I have to say she was most excited about her Barbie! Mom was a little hesitant about getting something with so many accessories that could get lost or choked on, but Grams did an excellent job finding one where the shoes and necklace were permanently attached. Thanks, Grams!

John has gotten to the stage where he doesn't want to wait for his presents to be given to him. He wanted them all now and then to help everyone else open theirs too. Ah well. He did a good job waiting to ride his new bike outside. But can you say "Pure happiness" when you see him with his helicopter?

And on to the bikes...

Two lucky bike riders! John and Bekah were so excited about their new bikes! They even knew exactly which bike went to which person. And I think the bow on John's bike is still attached to it. And since this entry is so long...I think I'll save the "Bike Ride" for another day. Keep watching!

A Memorable Christmas

A big 'thank you' to everyone who helped make our Christmas a good one this year. We were a bit under the weather (so if the pictures don't make us look quite like ourselves, that's why...cameras don't lie) but we survived it all. The kids had lots of fun with their presents and even though we've had runny noses all week, they've been able to enjoy the "new" stuff.

John loved his Spiderman toothbrush, toothpaste, and matching underwear from his stocking. Kelsey got a princess toothbrush, toothpaste, but no undies...ah well. She loves having her own toothpaste with matching accessories.

John got an old Fisher Price Parking Garage (almost antique now!) and Kelsey got the Fisher Price Doctor's Kit (antique too!). Both kids have loved playing with their toys and clothes! John loved his new Superman jammies and had to try out the cape on the back by jumping off the couch! He said it worked great!

Bekah's still doesn't quite understand what all the fuss is about. She was ready to open all of the presents the moment they arrived. So, when it finally came time for her to rip off the wrapping paper, she had to be persuaded to give it a go. Maybe next year she'll be more of a pro.

Shawn and I say "thank you" for our presents too. We were "lucky" enough to stay out of most of the pictures. Good thing too...since we don't look nearly as lovely as the kids. Sick kids take it out of the parents! So...we're hoping to recover fully by New Year's so we can party all night. Well, at least until bedtime. Thank you!