Family Christmas Traditions

I LOVE Christmas time!!! Since we came home just 8 days before the special day I figured that most of our typical holiday activities would have passed us by. Usually it all begins the week of Thanksgiving which my dad takes off work to turn his house into a Clark Griswold-like Christmas Light Wonderland! Then after Thanksgiving dinner we'd decorate my parents' Christmas tree. We'd decorate our house and put up our tree too. The weeks before Christmas would be full of baking hundreds of Christmas cookies, crafting gifts with the boys, shopping, Christmas cards, etc. This year Christmas is looking quite a bit different. Our own decorations are packed away... but we came home to finds lots of Christmas waiting for us! We could see the glow from all my dad's Christmas decorations from blocks away as we arrived home! Jonathan woke up as we parked and said, "Oooo! Look at all Papa's lights! It looks great!" My parents really wanted to boys to be able to decorate a tree, so they waited and had the boys put the ornaments on their tree. Jonathan and Aaron loved looking at each ornament and took great care when placing them on the lower branches on the tree. Luckily Papa and Grandma jumped in to help balance out by decorating the top of the tree.

Grandma & Aaron decorating the tree

Papa & Jonathan

Getting a little help from the bench

TA-DA!!

We'd been home only a few days when we were blessed to go to the annual Gingerbread house party with our dear friends the Duggans, the Moes, and the Lauterbachs! Lots of frosting, lots of candy, and lots of laughs- it made for a fantastic evening!

We even managed to do a Christmas craft! The boys had fun painting and gluing. They really enjoy making and giving gifts to others.

Taking his craft very seriously

Foam Decorations!

Can't wait to surprise our family and friends!

And we're making cookies too, just on a much smaller scale! All our cookie cutters are packed so thanks to Christine Bauer for letting us borrow her cutters so we could make such pretty cookies.

Rolling out the dough

Aaron preferred the free-form approach

This is lots of fun!

My happy helpers!

JJ frosting a snowman

Yep, these need lots of sprinkles!

Yummm!

I think Aaron liked the frosting more than the cookies

He did get some frosting on the cookies

Aaron gives his bite of approval!

Christmas Eve Eve our church hosted but we missed it because Kris & Jonathan weren't feeling well and and we didn't want to share any germs! 

Christmas Eve we went light-looking which I've done with my dad and sister for as long as I can remember (sadly my sister Carrie can't join us this year, but we're so happy to start sharing it with the boys). This will be Aaron's first year and I can't wait to watch his face light up!

All bundled up and ready to go!

Nativity in Murphys

The real reason for the season in Angels Camp

and our personal favorite- Papa's house!!

 Christmas cards didn't happen this year, and I'm not too disappointed about it, maybe we'll send out Easter cards, lol. 

We completed our Christmas shopping in Belize and online, which meant I came home and got to do my favorite part- wrapping the gifts!

Christmas morning was spent with my sister and her boyfriend in Stockton. It was her first time hosting Christmas dinner. She did a fantastic job! We also enjoyed meeting Dustin's family for the first time! 

Jonathan's ready for presents!

JJ & AJ get a drum set from Grandma and Papa- Oh my!

The Family

The goofy family!

Our little family

Me & my "little" sister

Carrie & Dustin

Carrie, Mom, & Me

We'll celebrate Christmas with Kris' family on New Year's Eve and can't wait to see everyone!

We certainly feel so blessed to be home to celebrate such a wonderful Season, and to be so near to all our families and friends!