Christmas Morning

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas with your family and friends. We certainly did! Although we try to keep Christmas focused on The Christmas Story (and I am not referring to the one where Ralphie gets his eye shot out), Santa did make a stop at our house.
Maddie got a doll house
Preston got a train table
Thank goodness Santa found a Snow White dress!
Maddie wore it all day!
P got a basket ball goal and loves it!

Christmas Card

We got together with Melanie this morning to get a pic for our Christmas card. As usual, I am going to be getting them out at the last minute. However, it was worth the wait! Melanie is an amazing photographer. The Lord has truly given her a gift. She specializes in baby photography, and I can promise you will not be disappointed if she does a session for you. You can check out her blog here.


Just before this pic I told the kids "Mamaw and Papaw are coming today!"

A party for Jesus

A few weeks ago, Maddie asked how many candles Jesus would have on His birthday cake. I told her He would have a whole bunch! She then asked if we could make Him a cake. I said yes, then she asked to invite her friends. Marty and I thought it was a great idea, so we decided to have a birthday party for Jesus. We asked each family to bring a new toy to donate to families in need in honor of Jesus' birth. We had so much fun! We placed a star candle on the cake and talked about the star of Bethlehem. Jordan wanted to make sure it wasn't so bright that it hurt Baby Jesus' eyes. It was such a precious time with our kids.
We had a few activities planned for the kids. We made red suckers by melting candy and pouring it in a mold. Each child also made a Christmas ornament. I found clear glass ornaments at the craft store, and the kids filled them with colored shredded paper. They colored on the glass and wrote their names with paint pens. They turned out cute! The hit of the evening was making snow. Debbie found a kit at Wal-Mart, and everyone loved it! It was a white powder that you mix with water. It was really cool. We hope you are enjoying this precious time of year!
We lit the candle 6 times so that each child could have a turn blowing it out for Jesus



Snow!

Rudolph Noses

This is a yummy treat. I got the recipe from here. It's so easy that this would be a great treat to share at those last minute get togethers.

Rudolph Noses

You need mini pretzels, Rolo's, and M&M's.
Place parchment paper on a baking sheet. Place pretzels on the parchment paper, and put one Rolo on top of each pretzel. Heat at 350 for 4 to 5 minutes, remove from the oven, and place one M&M on top of the melted Rolo.

Let cool and enjoy!

Party at school!

The kids had a big day at school. Santa came in the morning, and Maddie's class had caroling late in the afternoon. All the parents and grandparents were invited for the caroling. She did a great job singing, and it was so cute. The kids LOVE jingle bells!

Dear Santa,

Dear Santa,

I am very excited for Christmas. I have been a very good girl because I am, but Preston keeps biting his cup. I eat food. I be nice. For Christmas, please bring me an etch-a-sketch, and Handy Manny tools, but a girl one, not a boy one like Preston. I have three dresses but I need 4, a Snow White one with slippers. Please bring my mommy a big etch-a-sketch, bring my daddy a diamond, and Preston a doll, a babydoll. Santa, I know you look white and red with a hat that's white, so I'll be watching for you!

Love,

Maddie Grace
12/17/09

More crafts...

I saw some letters similar to these at a Christmas show and decided to make them myself. They were really easy, and I have them on a knob on each of the kids bedroom doors.
You need paint, wooden letters, a sponge brush or paintbrush, a round sponge brush for the dots, and ribbon.

Getting crafty

Maddie loves things that sparkle. I found a glittery candy cane applique at JoAnn's (for $1.00!), so I decided to make a Christmas shirt for her. It was so easy. Here's what you need: a shirt (I got this red turtleneck at Target for $4.00), an iron-on applique, and an iron. Maddie asked me what the iron was. I had to laugh...I am no ironer.

Before...
After. I think it turned out great, and it took 30 seconds! If you click on the picture, you can see it better. What crafts have you made for the holidays?

Maddie Grace's 1st Movie

Nicki and I took Olivia and Maddie to their very first movie: The Princess and the Frog! Maddie thought we were going to watch a movie on someone's tv. I explained that it was going to be the biggest tv she's ever seen. We let the girls wear their princess costumes...what else would you wear to a princess movie? They loved the whole theater experience, especially the popcorn, Reese's Pieces, Milk Duds, Cotton Candy, and Sprite. Nicki and I had so much fun watching the girls take it in. Afterwards, we took them for frozen yogurt followed by a trip to Toys R Us to look around. It was a great night!


Dancing to a song
Toys R Us... Santa will not be bringing that!

If you have two small kids, and your house is quiet...it's usually not good. This is what I found...

We need a little Christmas...

I love Christmas time. I would start decorating after Halloween if Marty would let me. My parents always made Christmas so magical for my sister and me, and I have carried a lot of their traditions into our family, and we have started some of our own. We started with 5 trees this year. I can't help myself. Here are some of our pics:

The reason we celebrate...
...is our precious Savior!
My helper
The tree in the bonus room
Our bedroom
Maddie's room
Preston's room
The living room tree

Ho-ho (our family elf on the shelf) is sneaky
We count the days...
...in many ways

My grandmother's candy dish filled with red and green M&Ms. She always kept it full!
A gum drop tree just like my grandmother's

What are your family traditions?

Hmmm....

Guess who's wearing princess chapstick?

Against his will

Thanksgiving

I did a terrible job taking pics on Thanksgiving. I guess we were having too much fun being together with our family. Here is the best of what I got:

Cousin Hailey just got braces, and she looks so grown up!
Maddie loved Mamaw's famous pumpkin pie
Uncle Howard loved Mamaw's home made bread
This speaks for itself