Nativity Play and Cookie Exchange

The moms in our small group thought it would be fun to start the tradition of our Bible study group kiddos putting on a Nativity play each year. "Oh it'll be so cute!" "They can act out the whole story!" Our minds were filled with some picture-perfect event!! Well, we didn't really consider the fact that we have 18 kids between us, and that only 6 of them are 5 or older!! So when we decided on our cast of characters, we determined there had to go a lot of sheep and donkeys! So while it wasn't the picture-perfect event we had played out in our minds, it was adorable!

I wound up hosting, as we were needing an area large enough to accommodate 14 adults and 18 kids. Somehow I thought our basement fit the bill. And while it did, it was crowded! But I'm pretty sure there isn't a room big enough anywhere for us!! It turned out to a sweet show, followed by a cookie exchange with lots of yummies! 

I must admit, after we walked the last guest out of the basement, I didn't go down there for two straight days because I was scared of what I might see! Luckily we blocked off the playroom and only had out our Little People christmas toys, so there wasn't much to get in to!

I think in a few years from now though, we will have an award winning performance!!!

Grant was Joseph, and he was so proud of his role! Here come Mary and Joseph looking for a room at  the inn..

Instead, they found a stable and their baby was born!

 The shepherds came to see him (Adleigh wasn't enjoying her role) and worship...

 A multitude of angels appeared...

 And the three wise men followed the star.

 And they gave him gifts and bowed down to worship.

 and they all sang Silent Night. 

 The End. 

Such an adorable cast. One sheep is not pictured. Thank goodness for our watchful shepherds!

And these two- just had to add this picture! These twin fellas are just a riot! They camped out like this in the boys recliner, chugging on their bottles. One double fisting Little People and one ringing a cowbell nonstop. Talk about an amazing night!!

St. Nicholas Day

Waking up on December 6th always means that St. Nicholas came! Shed usually is close by too- he never wants to miss St. Nicholas's visit! We love traditions and this is one of our favorites! We read the story of St. Nicholas before we go to bed, then sit out our shoes and run down the stairs the next morning to see what was left! No gold coins this year, but lots of other goodies to enjoy!

 Horrible pictures- I know! Dark morning and quickly moving kids don't mix well for iPhones. But you get the idea!

Thanks for visiting St. Nicholas!

Christmas Mural

One of our very favorite Christmas traditions is our Advent pocket quilt. My mom made it for us years ago and its one of the first things the boys want to get out when the decorations are pulled out! It's evolved over the years as to what we do with them, but we've enjoyed the same system for the last couple years. Each morning, the boys open a pocket. Inside, there is a Christmas joke, activity card- like bake cookies, look at lights, bring treats to a neighbor, see Santa, do a craft project- and a little toy of some sort- this year, they're loving little figures that come from .25 machines! We haven't had as much free time to do our activities like we usually do, since Grant is at school all day and we always have gymnastics or something to do in the evenings. So while we've always been a lot more active in our activities in years past, this year, I had to let some things go. It broke my heart to do so because my fellas just eat up these types of activities!! But we've managed to do some special activities here and there! I'm always strategic when it comes to which activity card goes in which pocket day. No use putting "go look at lights" on a night we have gymnastics till 8:00. Just not going to happen! So while I planned to do a Christmas mural on a Saturday, I did not plan on having Mason and Luke here, but it was the perfect addition to our already fun activity!

I started by painting Merry Christmas and then I let them go to town. I had out a palette of all the paints, glitter glue, markers, and do-dads to decorate with. This kept them busy for SO long! I loved listening to their ideas being thrown around. They each did kind of keep to their own little area of the mural, but they came together at the end to do the christmas lights across the top! After it was all dry, we hung it on the wall above the basement kitchen table, which was the perfect backdrop for our cookie exchange party we had the following week!!

I hope we can continue these special activities for years to come!

Star Wars at Church

Our church has a wonderful children's ministry and the boys get so excited to see what fun activity or song or project they will get to do! They actually get sad when we can't make it to church, such a great problem to have!! 

So when we found out the month of December was going to involve a Star Wars theme for children's worship, the boys were ready to bust down the door to see what was going to happen!! The premise of the curriculum was that The Magi were on a quest – following a star to find the child king foretold in prophecy. Along their journey, they encountered both the dark and the light, both good and bad. In the end they met Jesus, the true star of their trip, and light of the world. It was a neat way of making the Christmas Story come alive for these guys!

Upon walking in to church the first week, it was like a Star Wars flood of the coolest decorations you ever could imagine! Lots of "look at this!" and "Oh my gosh, look at that!" and "Wow look over here!" Everywhere we looked, there was something else amazing!! 

Sadly, we only made it to church twice in December because we were out of town the other two weekends, but no doubt they will remember this for a long time to come!!

 The imperial starship pulled by AT-AT walkers!

 There were hundreds of these paper snowflakes! I can't even imagine cutting those out!!

An imperial starship made into a Christmas tree!

Oh it was so fun!!! 

Boys in their Bed

I love sneaking one last little kiss and "I love you" with the boys before I head off to bed. Some nights they're almost impossible to find, buried beneath heaping loads of blankets and bears. Some nights, they're snuggled up so sweet and tiny I'm reminded of what they were like when they were babies. But this night, I loved seeing them laying exactly the same! There is not much about these boys that are the same, other than they share the same parents! They are about as different as night and day. To see them sleeping the same was just so sweet and precious! I love their bond as brothers, no matter the differences between them!

Christmas at Crown Center

Oh how we enjoyed playing hooky this afternoon and making a visit out to Crown Center! I don't normally condone skipping school (well, unless its to go see a movie that we've been waiting to see (Peanuts Movie!)) but we just couldn't resist an open afternoon on a beautiful day! Wyatt didn't have school anyway, so only Grant missed the afternoon portion!

We started with Santa first but after that, we had to go explore! So after a spin around the inside and a walk through the Hallmark store, we headed across the street to the fountains and Mayors Christmas Tree. I don't remember having all the fun little play things around there when I was growing up, but maybe we just never played on them because we always went to see Santa at night, when it was dark, and cold! See- skipping school has lots of perks! But oh my goodness, did the boys enjoy themselves! There were probably 15 different vehicles to sit in, and play on, and climb around! Not to mention the 100ft tall gargantuan tree in the middle of the place! Such a festive and jolly place to be! 

On Santa's Lap

We decided today was the perfect day to skip the afternoon of school and head out to see Santa!! Our weekends are full from now til Christmas, and who wants to fight the crowds on the weekend! So we decided that an afternoon of missed school was worth it! And it was just the perfect time! Santa was ready and waiting for us when we got there!!  

I used to see Santa at Crown Center every year until I was about 16. Not kidding. But my boys have never been to Crown Center at Christmastime, so it was definitely on my Christmas "to-do" list! I'm so glad we went out there too because they LOVED it! Santa lives at the Gingerbread Station this time of year! It was a super adorable little train and gingerbread village lining the walls and the playspace. Of course, they loved every little thing about it!

We hopped right on to Santa's lap and he asked them all about being good or bad. Who keeps their room clean? Who goes to bed when they're told to? Who works hard on their school work? They loved him! Then it came down to the big question- What do you want for Christmas? Grant said anything that has a remote control! Wyatt said a Lego Star Wars Bionicle. Then Santa gave them a fist bump and told them to be good for goodness sake!! 

I have all their Santa pictures from 2008 in different frames on our bookshelves! They make the perfect Christmas decoration every year! I love our growing collection!

Welcome Back Shed!

We welcomed back our little elf friend, Shed, this morning!! Oh how they boys have been waiting and waiting for this day!!!! Grant was so sure he was coming back to the morning of Thanksgiving, he left this note for him...

But a few days went by and Shed still hadn't come! I reassured the boys that the past few years he's come on December 1st, so we just had to be patient. Well, December 1st was a little bit of a different schedule for us that day since we had Grant's Gingerbread House Day. Wyatt spent the night at Mimi and PawPaws the night before, so now we were hoping that Shed wouldn't come on December 1st so Wyatt wouldn't miss out! It was such a dilemma! He didn't come on December 1st, but he did leave us a note that said he would be coming tomorrow!!

But Shed knew to wait one extra day so they both would be home to see his arrival! And it wouldn't be an elf arrival without a special and festive breakfast!!

Of course, most mornings I have to wake the boys up, but not today! They hopped out of bed and were ready to head downstairs right at 7:00! We searched around for Shed for a little bit, but as we made our way into the kitchen, we found him! He brought some new plates, new cups and straws, yummy food, Christmas woof-woof puppies, and a nice little letter! He was sitting in his favorite chair too!

Oh, how excited we are to see what Shed has in store for us this Christmas season!!! We're so happy you're back Shed!

1st Grade Gingerbread Day

It's a tradition at Grant's school that the first graders have a gingerbread house making day on December 1st. I knew I couldn't miss this, so Wyatt got to spend the night at Mimi's the night before so I could devote three whole hours to this special event! I so love being up at school, in Grant's class, as often as I can! Someday I don't think he will appreciate it, so I have to get my time in while I still can!

 Their houses were displayed throughout the library for the month of December for the whole school to see!

 Here is Grant's masterpiece! Here is the front...

 ...and here is the back! No detail overlooked!

What a special tradition!! And guess who brought it home on December 18th and has eaten the majority of the candy off it?!?