Peter Pan's Pranks

We had fun again this year finding our Elf, Peter Pan everyday and seeing what he was up to.  From measuring himself on our Growth Chart, to eating our donuts, to toilet papering our tree, to making funny faces in the bathroom, he was up to a bunch of crazy things. 

I think the funniest thing about all the fun things he did this year was when he was in the bathroom.  Sam and James wouldn't use it because he was in there "watching".  We got the biggest kick out of the fact that they would run in there needing to go and then quickly run out and run upstairs to use another bathroom so he couldn't "watch".  These kids crack me up!

Breakfast, Our Favorite Meal of the Day

We sometimes have the greatest time ever without even planning it.  Today it was breakfast.  The kids were cracking us up.  From eating straight jelly packets, to insisting they cut their own food, to James' pancake shark swimming in syrup we had a great morning.  I'm so glad we decided to treat ourselves to a yummy breakfast!

The Daily Us

Just had to share a few fun shots of us hanging out and enjoying our Christmas presents.  I love to remember everyday life and am trying to capture it better so we never forget how fun these days are. 

Sam will disappear for hours and play Legos.  Sometimes I have to remind myself he's home because he is so quiet and content.

 Are these not the biggest suckers you've ever seen?!  And yet they still had to problem eating all of it.

 James loves his Star Wars Legos and saves us daily from galactic peril.

 This is James "Mario" hat.  He loves to pretend and has an amazing imagination.

 James and Snuggles are buddies.  That is until she is tired out and finds a small place to find for a break.

Surrounded by puppies (as she always is) she is content no matter where she is.

 Chloe loves to play with James and follow his lead.  This is her "Luigi" hat.  What ever the current theme she jumps on board.

 Chloe raids my closet almost daily for fun dress-ups.

If it fits on her head it's a head by default.

 How can you not love this face?!

 On cold mornings Seth tries to bundle up by the fire and get the heater to blow into his cocoon.

 SO happy we have this new little girl in our family.  She is so cute and the kids love her to death.  Just wish something this small and cute didn't make such big messes! :)

Christmas 2012

Oh, the day we'de all been waiting for all month!  The Christmas Countdown said "1" and we were so excited it was finally Christmas Eve.  There was so much to do to prepare.  We had to clean up, get the cookies, milk, and carrots out, and get to bed in time so Santa had plenty of time to bring our presents.

We woke up bright and early and couldn't wait to get downstairs to see what we got.  While we waited for Dad to see if Santa came we had to take the traditional bed and stair pictures before running down and opening our presents. 

Sam noticed right away that Santa had been there and taken the goodies we had left him and his reindeer.  The kids were so excited that he liked them.

 Then it was on to presents. 
Here's Sam's loot:

 James' loot:

 Chloe's loot:

 Chloe was so excited to see that Santa brought her a real white puppy, just what she'd asked for.  They were best friends instantly.  We decided to name her Snuggles because she was so cute and fluffy and loved hugs.

 Snuggles even warmed up to Dad pretty quickly too.

 James was thrilled to get Luke's Ship and Darth Vader's Ship too. 

 He was flying it all over the house.

 And then he would pause every once in a while just to sit and stare and admire it! :)

 Sam got Hobbit Legos and was so excited to have Bilbo's house.  He immediately took it in the other room and entered another world.

 We decided not to open our other presents until later in the day when Grandma and Grandpa M were able to come over and be with us.  We didn't need to open them right away because we were having so much fun with our Santa gifts.
The kids got more Legos, a Polar Express Train and vintage train art for the Train Room at Grandpa's house, and Chloe scored some princesses and a rocking moose.

 We ended our late morning with a T family traditional yummy breakfast.  It was delicious and we all sat around enjoying our full tummies while we watched the kids play with their new toys. 

 And Grandpa made a new friend! :)

 Snuggles got to enjoy some of her Christmas gifts too! :)

Lights, Lights, Lights

I just love Christmas lights and I am so glad we've been able to go see some many.  Thanksgiving Point has some great lights that are fun to drive through.  We especially like the fun glasses you can get to make the lights look like different shapes like gingerbread men, snowflakes, candy canes...

My favorite part about the Thanksgiving Point lights is the Christmas story they have at the end with the beautiful art work and spot lights on them.  It is nice to be able to enjoy the fun part of Christmas and the Spiritual part.