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.