Christmas joy 2013.

Christmas this year was lovely. It came extremely fast! I must be getting old; time is going faster every year. ;) I felt like Christmas blew through my life like a tornado and now I'm watching it fade into the distance, amazed at how such a big part of the year can hit you, then be gone a moment later. Now I am enjoying the aftermath. I loved looking through these photos and seeing the evidence of a memorable Christmas. We all got more than we could ask for and I am so grateful. I feel so blessed and hope you all had a lovely Christmas as well.

Dec. 20-21st.
The first part of our holiday was up north with my dad's side of the family. It was so great seeing everyone and catching up!

opening gifts at grandpa and grandma's house.

so excited!

kitty likes gift opening as well.

Emmett and my dad were wearing the same outfit: Wild shirts and camo pants. (Emmett is not picking his nose!)

opening more gifts with the whole family.

Emmett's face kills me. He made this expression in every family photo.

with my aunt, Kelly.

Emmett was so tired by evening; he literally passed out in my arms and slept through an outfit change. He was done.

Christmas Eve.
On Christmas Eve, Matt's family came to our place for brunch. It was really yummy and nice. We exchanged gifts, played with new toys, and watched a couple of movies. I didn't get as many photos of this day as I wanted to. It was busy. The kids' expressions while opening their presents is priceless. Ethnie was such a big help Emmett. She helped him find his gifts, cut the ribbon for him, and helped him rip the paper. Love these moments!

my favorite photo of the entire year.

 we got Emmett one of his favorite books. now he doesn't have to check it out every time we go to the library. :) if you're looking for a new children's book, this is a good one.

Emmett also asked for a new green truck. He loves the one we got him!

Since summer Ethnie has been asking for an American Girl doll for Christmas. Honestly, I was hoping the wish would fade (this stuff is sooo expensive), but it only got stronger as the months passed. Well, she most definitely proved to us that she deserved one; she has been a very good girl this year. And I remember when I was younger there were years when I wanted a bigger-ticket item than other years. I'm sure Emmett will have a wish like Ethnie's soon enough.

so we got her what she wanted.

deep down, I think I bought her the doll just so I could capture her face when she opened it!

so happy. she named her Scout.

pie after bunch.

my bud.

he tries to hide from me when I take his picture.

love the truck face. this is his gift from papa and grandma!

passed out in papa's arms. he had a lot of fun.

 
Christmas day.
After the kids opened their gifts from Santa (more trucks and doll accessories), we went back up north to spend the day at my mom's house. We had a great time and the weather was a bit warmer. We took advantage of it and went sledding down the driveway for awhile. Ethnie loved it. Emmett hated it. We are still trying to break him of being scared of just about everything. ;)

 

 

sweet girl. her gloves are a bit big on her.

yep. Emmett cried the second he touched snow.

 

first time going down on her belly!

a John Deere tractor of his own.

new chapter books.

American Girl craft.

Christmas was wonderful! Now it's time to take a breath, celebrate Ethnie's birthday, take another breath, celebrate the new year, take another breath, and celebrate our anniversary! We are bombarded this time of year!!

the anti-scrooge campaign.

This thought is being posted a bit late, but it's worth reading.

I learned this week that one of my friends started her own Anti-Scrooge Campaign during this Christmas season. It's brilliant and simple: Whenever you're feeling stressed, crabby, annoyed (i.e. "Scroogish") during this crazy season, you do something to serve someone else. That's it. I love it and I'm joining this campaign! You all should too! 

I love how this immediately helps you to think about the true meaning of Christmas. Whether it's calling someone who wants to hear your voice, donating items for those in need, or shoveling your neighbor's walk, it will remove any bitterness from your heart. There are millions of ways to serve someone so you can do it all day long if you want to. I am grateful that we can also use Christmas as a reminder to be more like Jesus Christ; more charitable, kind and selfless. I am also grateful to have the responsibility to teach this to my children. Some day they will discover that Santa is a fictional character, but they will always know that Jesus is real, that they can always believe in Him, and that He is the true meaning of Christmas. 

A few things I am loving during Christmas this year:

*Being festive! This means wearing ugly Christmas sweaters to work, right babe?

*Looking at old family photos and remembering Christmases past.

*Wishing people a merry Christmas. No shame!

*Eating zillions of treats. And have you ever tried a hot chocolate float with peppermint ice cream??!!

*Watching Emmett discover the magic of Christmas this year. He has been so fun to watch and listen to when he sees presents, Santa, lights. He carries our gifts from under the tree around the house. He gazes at the tree telling me what the ornaments are. And he absolutely loves watching The Polar Express.

*Listening to Christmas carols. The Fist Noel is my favorite.
*Staying AWAY from all the commercial hype. No black Friday or marathon shopping trips for me. It has helped me to enjoy the season so much more. I have embraced online shopping!
*The anticipation of watching Ethnie open her gift from us. She's getting something she REALLY wants this year. Can't wait!

*Family activities. I love it when we are all together.

*Making Christmas gifts. They feel more personal.
*Going home to be with all of my family! I always look forward to it!

I wish all of you a wonderful Christmas! Safe travels, pleasant visits, and fun new memories too. 

bad mom moment.

Last night, the kids and I made a trip to Menards before picking Matt up from work. I needed to get a unique-sized light bulb. Plus, the kids love looking at their Christmas display (or I like to call it the Christmas department because it's so big).

our next tree. it's only $679 at Menards. save big money.

After browsing the display, ornaments, and toy aisles, the kids started to get squirrelly. Things were getting knocked off trees and taken off shelves. So we made our way upstairs to the lighting department. I'm not sure if every Menards store is like this, but the one in St. Paul is huge and has two levels with an open floor plan.

As you can see from the photo, the second level of the store has loft-like style. As I looked for the odd-shaped light bulb, the kids were only a few feet away looking over the railing. I got frustrated hunting so I grabbed an associate to help me. As he was helping me, I heard Ethnie calling my name. Keeping my focus on the light bulbs, I called, "Just a minute." She called my name more urgently. After I got what I was looking for, I turned to Ethnie a bit annoyed. She pointed to Emmett and my mouth dropped. 

There he was, launching slate landscaping rocks over the railing! 

He found them nearby on an outdoor light display! I immediately ran over, stopped him, and looked out over the store. There were about six rocks scattered on the floor and four people looking up at me with very irked expressions on their faces. Yikes. I was so embarrassed. The only thing I could do was call down to them, "I am so very sorry." Emmett just pointed, saying, "Rocks." No one was hit; nothing was damaged, but I had the 'bad mom' blurb floating over my head. I felt so bad and left as soon as I could. 

We picked Matt up from work and I told him what happened and how I almost had a heart attack. At first he laughed pretty hard, but then realized how much worse the situation could have been...

 

Dear Emmett,

 I know you are not a trouble maker. I know you do not do certain things to purposefully hurt someone or to be mean. You are a good, loving boy. You are just ALL boy and you need to understand your boundaries and the difference between right and wrong. I promise I will try to do the best I can at teaching you good morals and values. I will also try to be more patient with you when you do something you don't understand to be wrong. Like launching sharp rocks in public. Siiigghhh..........

i love you-  mom