Christmas

Our Christmas celebrations went on for a few days this year! It was wonderful minus all the sickness we kept passing around!!

We started our celebrations Christmas Eve afternoon and my dad and mom came over. (My sister's family was supposed to come as well but some of her kids were sick.) We ate an early dinner together and then exchanged gifts. They got the kids pj's and movies and goodies to go with the movies.

He's one of the six best Christmas gifts ever!

The girls sporting their jammies and comfy socks.

All the kiddos with Papa and Grandma.

Later that night was the Christmas Eve service at church. I stayed home with Joshua, Jadon and Natasha as they weren't feeling that well. Jay took the others to church.

I let them open their gift from Jay and I before the others got home so they could go to bed. I was able to find Joshua and Jadon matching jammies and all 4 girls matching as well! SCORE!


Poor baby she went right to bed and we were all praying she would be well in the morning.

My mom got me some jammies as well! ;)

When the girls and Jay got home we set out the cookies, milk and reindeer food. Then it was time to read the Christmas story from Luke and then off to bed!

Here is what was waiting Christmas morning! I don't know who gets more excited to get up Christmas morning, me or the kids! Daddy promised he would get up right away when they woke up this year and he did! lol We always video tape them coming down the stairs and they each go and find their stockings in front of their gifts. They all take turns opening a gift or two at a time so we can all see.

Here are a few of the pictures of them opening their gifts from Santa:

(Her expressions were priceless this year!)

Six kids on Christmas morning is such a rush of energy and excitement and it is such a blessing. Jay and I treasure every minute of it as we know it will be with in a blink and they will be grown and out of the house.

After we opened gifts from Santa we took a break to come eat the homemade cinnamon rolls I made the night before.

Next it was time to open gifts from one another. The kids all drew names and went shopping to get a gift for whoever name they drew.

Isn't that sweet! Joshua got Anastasia a Big Time Rush CD.

Anastasia used her own money and got them all a fish tank.

Me opening my stocking.
Jay opening his stocking.

Jay and I got the big kids all new scooters! They were so excited and rode them all around inside the house the rest of the day!

The rest of the day was spent in our jammies playing with toys, napping, putting toys together and eating. It was wonderful!

Christmas Explosion!



Christmas Continued on December 26th:

Jay's sister and her family was able to come in town on the 26th. So that afternoon after church we went over to Jay's dad's house and spent the day with family over there.

We got them the book "Tales from the High Meadow" written by Pastor Banta

I made some handmade Christmas ornaments this year for gifts.

Papa had been working hard and finally finished filling out the book about his life. It is a book about grandparents to give to their grand kids. I know it is a gift Anastasia will treasure for years to come.

My camera died but Jutem got a picture of all the kids together I will have to get a copy from her.

Christmas Continues December 27th

Monday we went and spent the day out at my Uncle Larry and Aunt Vicki's. Then on the way home that night we stopped by my sister's house so the kids could exchange gifts.

Merry Christmas To All and To All a Good Night!

Misc. Christmas Traditions

If you know me or have been reading my blog for any length of time you know that I am huge on creating and continuing family traditions. Of course celebrating our Lord and Savior's birth lends itself to so many wonderful traditions. This year we didn't get to do as many as we were extremely busy getting ready for Walk Through Bethlehem. The kids had the whole month of December off of school and they would take turns going with Jay the first two weeks of December to work on Bethlehem. After Bethlehem and around Christmas we all took turns getting sick. But we were still able to enjoy the season.



Some things we did:



Our church has Pastoral Partners (they are kind of in place of Deacons). Our Pastor, his wife and Jay and I host a round robin dinner for them. The appetizers were at the church, the main meal at our house and dessert was at our pastor's house.

It was a very yummy prime rib dinner!

Each year we go out and look at Christmas lights. Our favorite place to go is "Cherry Lane" The whole street is done and at the last house you can walk through their back yard and they have an entire Bethlehem scene done up in cut outs. It is fabulous.

We also of course go and visit Santa each year. This is our second year going to Bass Pro Shop. They have a winter wonderland all set up and the picture with Santa is FREE! (You can't beat that)
Of course it isn't a picture with Santa if someone is not crying.

Each year we make sugar cookies and go all out decorating them.

Yummy! Jadon likes sugar cookies!

Wow that is a decorated sugar cookie!

Here is our manger scene but I don't know how I missed getting a picture of our other platter of cookies. :(

We are going up to a cabin later this month and we are going to decorate our gingerbread houses and ornaments up there.