Christmas fun all month long

How about I just pick up where I left off? That same Friday that Bryan & I returned from Colorado, Dad & Ann came down for a visit to celebrate an early Christmas with all of us. We had a really fun weekend.

There was a Santa sighting on our street that afternoon that got the kids all excited. The neighbors may or may not have been creeped out by seeing Santa traipse through their yards. :)

The kids were treated to some fun gifts from their grandparents. The girls got lovely Christmas dresses with doll clothes to match, and the boys got handsome shirts and ties.

Will got this giddy-upping, galloping, whinnying rocking horse that he fell in love with immediately. Unprompted, he ran to his room and got his cowboy hat. He put on quite the show after that.

The next day we enjoyed a delicious brunch made by Sarah followed by some quality family time playing Beatles Rock Band. I enjoyed watching my dad try on the guitar. :) Everyone got into it and it was really fun.

Will very reluctantly relinquished the guitar he was playing so he could go take a nap.

Once he woke up we took a little road trip out to Burnet where the Baptist church there has put together an amazing Bethlehem town. It is quite the attraction, and people drive in from all over to come see it in December. Our timing was pretty good, and we only had to wait in line an hour before it opened. Time was passed with some yummy snacks that Ann had packed and one huge bag of kettle corn.

Once we passed through the gates we entered Bethlehem as it may have looked in Bible times. People were in costume and role playing everyday life back then. It was really neat. Matt consulted the map and knew exactly where we were and where we were headed. We saw women huddled around a fire making food, candles and baskets being made, Roman soldiers arresting people and taking them to jail, merchants selling their wares, bread being baked, animals being tended to, and the inn was definitely full.

Shepherds were running around heralding the star that they had seen and that the Christ child had been born. Matt was fascinated with the tax collector speaking to citizens about whether they had paid their taxes or not. He loved seeing all those coins on the table.

We couldn't resist a photo op with the Roman chariot. At the end of our tour of Bethlehem we saw the manger where Mary and Joseph were cradling the newborn Jesus. What a neat experience we had that night! It helped prepare our hearts and to focus on what the Christmas season is celebrated for. I was amazed at what that church had put together; city walls, costumes, props, animals, the whole bit. Felt like we were really there.

How else do you end a meaningful evening such as that? Small town Whataburger of course!

The next night our church had a Christmas night of Praise. We got to hear and sing all manner of wonderful Christmas music. It's one of my favorite services of the year. Will was able to withstand about 30 minutes of it before I whisked him back to the childcare room. Matt apparently was exhausted from our weekend of fun and ended up falling asleep in his daddy's lap.

That next week we constructed our gingerbread house. This is a much anticipated activity that Matt looks forward to so much that he begs for it everyday in December until it is put together. He was very methodical with his candy placement this year.

Will didn't contribute too much to the decorating. Instead, he sat on the table and ate the candy out of the bowls, much to his brother's frustration. All that candy consumption may have led to the facial expressions in this photo. We had fun.

Did you know that Toaster Strudel has a special holiday edition with festive green icing? Will does. He's a fan.

Will had a little Christmas performance that he got to participate in one evening. The 4 year old preschool classes role played the Christmas story with much cuteness, and Will and his 2 year old class filled in as angels. They got to sing a few songs at the end of the program. Oh my, so cute! Will is standing next to his teacher with his little hands together next to his face.

He did a good job singing and doing the hand motions. He also spotted his brother in the audience and then got all goofy. The boys posed with the props afterward. Matt looks so natural holding that infant, doesn't he? No, no not really.

Where did I leave off?

It's been too long. My apologies. I'll start with Thanksgiving. This is a great shot of the kid's table and Bryan's thinning hair. Love you, Bryan. We had a great day with family from both sides. We spent the morning with Tim & Pam and the rest of the day with the Morans and Reners. 2 turkeys, count them 2!!! Delicious food and good times. And a Longhorn win!!!That weekend hunter Steven got himself a deer. In a few weeks we will have lots of meat to share, so get ready.

While the men were hunting, Joy & I took the kids to see the Chuy's parade downtown. It was a chilly, drizzly morning, but the parade was still awesome as usual.

Matt could hardly wait to get the Christmas decorations out. It was a process that took a few days, but we got it all up finally! Matt wore the Santa hat while we decorated.

The kids had fun running up and down the aisles of trees at Lowe's until Steven & I agreed on a winner. Playing in Daddy's old truck is a good time too.

Both boys enjoyed decorating the tree this year. Matt took care of the back of the tree for me, and Will claimed the ladder so he could put ornaments up high. So we had lots of clustered areas of ornaments and ornaments dangling dangerously at the very tips of branches. It's great to have such enthusiastic helpers!

I attended Joy's annual Christmas cookie exchange party again this year, and it was a fantastic party as always. Every year there are more and more people and more and more cookies! It's so fun to see what everyone made and of course to taste them all. These women are fierce competitors too. While we partied, the boys and kids were here at our house. I love this shot of them all in their footie jammies. Matt's pj's are huge...every time I fold them I can't believe how big he has gotten. He's not stopping either.

Last week my brother & I made a quick trip up to Denver to attend my grandfather's funeral. My grandfather had been living with Alzheimer's for several years, and my grandmother had been the one taking care of him all this time. She was so devoted and loving, and I know it was so difficult to see him go. He is buried at the Fort Logan national cemetery; such a beautiful place that is bigger than I could have imagined. We had a brief military service at the cemetery out in the blistery cold before the memorial service at their church.

Bryan & I got to spend some good time with my mom's side of the family and even got to meet a cousin we'd never met before. Seeing my grandmother is like talking to my mom. Her voice and her mannerisms and her laugh are exactly like my momma's. It was really sweet to just be in her presence and soak it all in. It makes me so sad that she is so far away, and I can't be directly involved in her life or be there to help her. She is not alone though with my uncle nearby and amazing neighbors that look after her daily. It was a great trip, and I am so glad Bryan & I went. It was good sibling bonding time too.

While I was away, Pam took care of the boys one afternoon, and then Steven was able to have 2 days off to look after them. I'm pretty sure they had a great time with their daddy. He's pretty awesome.

Gettin' ready

Thanksgiving is just days away, and I would say we are definitely in the spirit. The boys each made their own celebratory hats at their own individual schools last week and have enjoyed wearing them everyday since. Here they are the turkey hat pumpkin waffle brothers!

It only makes sense to take the party outside, so they motored around outside in their jammies. I was really hoping that our neighbors weren't trying to sleep in because wow are those two boys loud.

Last Wednesday was the big Thanksgiving lunch at Matt's school. Will & I joined him, and we had a great time eating a yummy festive meal in the cafeteria and meeting some more of Matt's friends. The library was having a huge book fair that week as well, and Matt fell in love with everything he saw. Much to his disappointment we only walked away with 2. I can only handle so much Super Diaper Baby. Eeesh.

We purchased some Girl Scout and Boy Scout goodies from some neighbor kids way back in September, and they finally arrived in the last couple days. The boys enjoyed their treats---with the hats, once again. Makes me laugh!

Six!

Year 5 flew by and now our big boy is 6 years old!!! Cannot believe it. Wednesday morning before school I made him some special birthday pancakes with sprinkles, and we put candles in them and sang happy birthday to Matthew.

After breakfast he had a few minutes left to open some of his birthday gifts from us and from Grandma & Grandpa. He couldn't play with them though because it was time to head out to school for the day. I sent him to school with pumpkin muffins to share with his class since cupcakes aren't allowed. I heard they went over well. That evening we went to Chick-Fil-A with Joy, Ava & Henry for a celebratory birthday dinner complete with my favorite seasonal peppermint and chocolate chip shake. Yum! Once we got home Uncle Tim & Aunt Pam stopped by to see the birthday boy and give him his birthday present. Books! I was excited about that one. So is he. We've read Super Diaper Baby a few times now. Potty humor is a hit with 6 year olds.

Thursday afternoon we had a special treat--Poppi & Gran came to visit us! We had a really nice time catching up with them. It was a lovely day so we spent some good time out in the backyard running and throwing the football around--with Matthew making up the rules of course.

We had a nice dinner, and then got to enjoy the delicious cupcakes that Ann brought for Matt's birthday.

He loved them; we all did! It was really wonderful getting to spend time with my dad and Ann and watching them play with the boys. We look forward to another visit soon!

Saturday was party day. Matthew requested an Angry Bird's themed party this year. It makes sense because every morning when he wakes up he plays it on my phone before breakfast. He's become quite skilled at it too, I might add. So, we had pizza, cake, a pinata, and this awesome bounce house...

Not fitting with the theme, but for the price I got for it it was a fun choice. We had fun on that thing all day long. And no one got hurt! Well, except for Bryan who got pile-drived in the back by Matthew later in the afternoon. Sorry about that, Bryan.

At cake time everyone came inside to sing happy birthday to Matthew. I stood around and couldn't believe the number of people that were crowded into my house. Half of them I really didn't even know.

You see, I decided to invite Matt's kindergarten class. I really thought only a small number would come. Boy was I wrong. 11 kids from his class came. So, we ended up with 26 kids and their associated adults plus family members. It was a big crowd this year! Thankfully, Matt wasn't overwhelmed and seemed to quite enjoy himself. That was one loud birthday song, too. The video of it is awesome.

After cake it was pinata time. Only 4 kids got to hit it this year. Karsyn was the one to crack it open. I couldn't believe it busted so quickly. That never happens! Usually it takes an adult, but I guess these kids are getting stronger; at least Karsyn is.

Then it was a frenzy for the loot. Once that was over most of the school kids left. It happened to be excellent timing that another little boy in Matt's class was having his birthday party at noon, and so the school friends left to go to that party.

Then it was the after party! Close friends and family stayed to keep jumping and to watch the very sad Longhorn football game.

More people left but the Moran family and Zach & Ava stayed around awhile longer. The kids played in Matt's room and constructed an awesome city from train track, Legos, and cars. And there was more bouncing of course.

Matt got to open his gifts and he got a large number of Legos. We have had a lot of fun putting them together over the last few days. Will has yet to disassemble them. Yet. We got our money's worth out of that bounce house; the kids had a blast. Will did some impressive acrobatics.

It was such a fun birthday celebration for our Matthew. He is one spoiled and loved kid. I am so thankful that he is in my life and that God has given us the great responsibility of raising him. He is a pure joy. Happy 6th Birthday Matthew Thomas!!!

Halloween Fun

We had a weekend full of fun! It started on Friday at Will's preschool where they had a little fall festival during school hours for the kids. I helped out at the craft station that morning, and it was so funny seeing Will's face as he spotted me when he walked into the craft room. It was fun seeing him interact with his school friends. Well, until he yelled at one of the kids--"hey, don't do that!!!"--for dumping out the crayons.

Saturday was the fall carnival at Matt's elementary school. I volunteered to work the fishing game for part of the time which really ended up to be most of the time, so I really missed all the fun of watching the boys run around. Steven was able to walk them around and enjoy it, and Joy and her kids were along for the fun as well. I know a highlight was sno cones. Another was the cupcake walk.

These two are just too cute. I love it.

Last up was a pony ride. Not much of a ride, really. More like riding on ponies going in a circle. They liked it though. Will said he wanted to do it...I got him on the animal, and he seemed okay, and then he abruptly changed his mind. So, no pony ride for Will.

Sunday after church Steven & Matt carved our pumpkin. Where was Will? He was pitching a fit over his lunch and missed the whole thing. He was more than a little strung out after missing a nap the day before due to our carnival fun. Matt named the pumpkin Mr. Trophy. I think he looks awesome.

Sunday evening our church hosted a family fest with lots of fun activities for the kids. I convinced Will to put on his costume by telling him that his cousins and friends would be dressed up too. He then wiped his tears and agreed to wear the tiger suit. And now he loves it. I gotta say I was shocked that he kept the hood on the entire time. My boys don't like anything on their heads or faces. He made a darn cute tiger. As we were walking along he kept looking behind him at his tail and admiring his shadow cast on the sidewalk. Hilarious.

Ava & Henry joined in on the fun as well!

Matt decided to be a skeleton this year. A fine choice. After being really disappointed in any of the store bought options of skeleton costumes, we went with a homemade version. $10 sweats and iron-on bones that Steven drew for me. Cute! And most importantly, Matt loved it.

Not surprisingly, Will was all about the bounce houses. He could have stayed there all night. He didn't even flinch with all the bigger kids in there with him, he just got down to the business of jumping and sliding.

In a surprise move, Matt wanted to have his face painted. Ava had walked over to the table to get hers painted and when I asked Matt if he wanted to he immediately said no. And then he changed his mind. He told me he was going to get a skeleton face, but then when he sat down he told the young lady he wanted a jack-o-lantern.

Caroline and Mary Claire were there too, and the boys were thrilled to just be in the same place as their cousins. It was a fun evening, and the boys got a head start on their candy collecting.

On Halloween we ate an early dinner, posed the boys for photos and then let them trick-or-treat at a few of our neighbor's houses on our street.

Then we loaded up and drove over to the Rener's to do more trick-or-treating in their hood.Matt & Ava are old pros now, and Will played the role of enthusiastic little brother trailing behind but running and doing his darnedest to keep up with the big kids. He was all over it. He got just as much candy as his brother. He didn't want any help carrying his pumpkin bucket or being carried himself. He had a job to do and he took it seriously. They all had a great time. We had fun watching them. Matt would report what candy he got after every single house. So funny. And now I will go raid those two plastic pumpkins!