Merry Christmas

I don't think our house door has been shut for more than 5 minutes the past few days! In, out, in, out.....we have had a house FULL of family and friends! In addition to the friends in and out, we hosted Christmas Eve for both sides of the family.

Christmas Eve morning, we have my family over. My siblings and dad all gather to open the Santa gifts that I shop for all year!! I have a big family, so it's a lot of shopping and wrapping! I get to shop with my dads credit card, which makes it even more fun! Dad is so sweet and wants to keep moms tradition of Santa gifts from "Pardner and Zsa Zsa's house!"

I told Hunter that Santa didn't have room at Pardners new home, so he asked to deliver the gifts for the grandparents house to our house! Makes total sense?! Hunter was excited to see all the gifts under the tree since Santa has to deliver to grandparents early...duh!! Anyways, he bought it and we had a blast opening all the "grandparent Santa" presents on Christmas Eve morning! Our living room was filled with my siblings and their children!

The house was filled with wrapping paper scraps, toy parts, kids, and chaos. I didn't have much time to gather things up before our next group of people arrived! My moms brothers and family come over to join the group for Christmas Eve lunch. We MISS our Zsa Zsa so dang much! Her brother (my uncle Jim) complimented me by saying, "even though Becky isn't here, gosh- I still feel her here in your home. The way you host holidays is so much like your mother!" Ahhhh, magic to my ears!

We have gumbo for lunch. Mom made gumbo from scratch! My sister used to make the gumbo after mom passed away. But, it is an ALL day event to cook gumbo...literally. So, we started buying the gumbo from Captain Toms years ago. It is delicious and much easier!! So, we whipped up some homemade cornbread and other sides to go along with the gumbo...delicious!! I may attempt moms homemade gumbo one day when I don't have babies demanding every waking moment.

We talked, played yard games, lots of visiting in the kitchen, kids EVERYwhere! It was perfection! Faith Ann was passed around in her adorable dress. She was hanging in there. She couldn't make it the entire party. I had to put her to sleep. How she slept, I don't know? Kids running in her room, down the hallway, lots of laughter! She was out like a light! However, she was the focus of all attention while she was awake.

My family wrapped up around 3:00 and headed out. The boys took a nap, and we geared up for round 3! Scott's family came over Christmas Eve night. We had a traditional Christmas meal. I made the dressing...moms recipe, which is a pain to make but so yummy! Scott's family is much 'calmer' so it's an entirely different feel. It's a treat to experience Christmas in many ways. My family...chaos, KIDS, constant noise and activity! Then Scott's family with actual silence to be able to say a blessing, listen to each others stories! Great balance!

Then, one of the best moments of Christmas 2014...Santa came to OUR HOUSE! Scott's cousin (JP) came over as Santa. We were eating dinner, and we heard bells. The boys ran to the door, and there was Santa!! The boys were in complete AWE! Santa had presents, came inside to visit...it was AWESOME! Hunter showed him everything. "Pay attention Santa. This is my stocking. This is my dog Bentley- she may need 2 treats in her stocking because she is big. I made reindeer food, and I'll give it to you only if you promise they will share it with each other!" It was hilarious!!! Priceless moment!

Faith Ann sat in front of Santa in amazement. She was right in the middle of her brothers. Hunter and Trent loved watching her, and they were so proud as she got to experience Santa. Trent kept looking at Faith Ann, he would smile at her like a proud big brother. I attempted to get a sibling picture with Santa, but Faith Ann was done! Bless her heart- she was beyond sleepy, but she never cried. She just whimpered and was passed around with sleepy eyes until I finally put her to bed! Scott wrapped up their night by reading Polar Express to them. Such a wonderful dad!

We had a big Christmas Eve night! Oh I forgot to mention that Grandpa (Scott's dad) knocked over an entire glass of red wine on our area rug! Poor thing, he felt so bad! I was paralyzed and just sat there! Scott, his sister and brother ran into action! They were fast acting and started moving furniture, lots of cleaning! It actually came out!! However, when everyone left...Scott and I moved all the furniture and flipped over the rug to clean the pad too and make sure the hardwood floors were okay. I think everything ended up just fine, but we had a late night!

Scott and I have our own Christmas Eve moment. Our tradition is to open our gifts alone Christmas Eve night. We take our time and really appreciate each other. After we spent alone time together, we searched our living room for a missing thumb tac that fell off our mantle. We NEVER found the dang thing!! We searched for an hour in fear that Faith Ann would find it. However, if she finds it she must have magic eyes! I sure hope it pops up soon before baby hands get it!!

Christmas morning!!! AWESOME! We set up their stacks and the boys were both big eyed when they came around the corner. We do 3 presents from Santa to go along with Jesus getting 3 gifts on his birthday. He received 3 gifts, therefore so do the kids! I feel that is a good way to keep Jesus part of the gift giving, and it also keeps the gifts in perspective. My moms motto...'if kids have everything, they appreciate nothing!" SO true! With the 3 gifts...the kids get to enjoy and focus on their presents!

Then, the siblings buy a gift for each other too. Scott and I took the kids to go "sibling shopping." Hunter LOVED picking out what he wanted Trent to buy him- ha!! It was a hard concept to teach them they are shopping for their siblings- not themselves! They loved watching the other open the gift. Hunter screamed what it was while Trent was opening!

Then, we spent the rest of the morning playing with toys. Hunter got a scooter. Trent got a bike. Lot's of outside play!! They ran and played for hours. Then they took a good nap! As soon as they woke, we headed to the Woodlands to gather with Scott's moms side of the family. Scott's mom (Gigi) is in town from California. She is staying with her mom (Mimi.) So, we all went to Mimi's. The kids were on their best behavior...seriously! It was great! They were so kind to all the adults and had wonderful 'inside behavior!' It's always a bit of a gamble when we go to a gathering with mostly adults. I was a proud momma, and the kids were so happy! We had a great time.

Faith Ann fell asleep in the car on the way home. The boys were pooped. It was a WONDERFUL Christmas. I am SO grateful for so much. First and foremost, my children and our health! My biggest prayer is always for our health. With health, you have everything! And this Christmas...we had everything! The joys, smiles, laughter, memories, chaos, quiet moments, hugs, imagination, and much more. I couldn't have asked for anything more. Thank you, God, for all that you YOU have blessed us with. Thank you from the bottom of my heart! Merry Christmas!

Picture Time

We have been on the go, which means lots of photo opportunities! Here we go...lots of sibling pictures in front of the Christmas tree! The kids are looking precious in their festive colors, so lots of pictures before we run out the door. 

We have seen Santa 3 times! We recently went to see Santa at my dads. His community did a "Santa and grandkids" party. It was so sweet to see the grandparents showing off their grandkids. We also went to "Breakfast with Santa" at church. Mrs. Claus read books before we visited with Santa. It was so fun, and Trent actually sat on Santa's lap...big deal!!

We went to ride the "Polar Express" train at Memorial Herman park. It was so fun!!! Hunter was in school, so I had just had Trent and Faith Ann with me. Trent had a blast. He was so quiet with a smile from ear to ear. He was just observing and soaking it all in. Faith Ann enjoyed the ride too!

Faith Ann is really looking like Trent these days! Everyone says that "Faith Ann is Trent with a bow!" So, just for comparison purposes....here is Trent with a bow. Ha!

The 3 kids all took their first real bath together! Faith Ann has been sitting in a blow up thing that protects her from falling. But, she sat in the tub this week. The boys loved Faith Ann being a "big girl!" Faith Ann loved it and splashed water everywhere. What is a bath time with your brothers without numb-chucks and Hunter wearing a ninja turtle shell on his back?!

Faith Ann wore a beautiful shirt today!! It was my moms, so it is over 60 years old!!! The lace detail is gorgeous! This is my favorite shirt ever, and I want one in my size!! It is so special that my mom wore it! Zsa Zsa would be obsessed with Faith Ann. How could she not be...look at this face!

Faith Ann is slowly catching onto the food thing. Saltine crackers have sparked her interest. She likes to feed herself. We have tried all types of food, but she seems to show most excitement about Saltines! She is learning the concept, and I have a feeling that she will be eating like a champ in no time!

We have been playing with lots of friends and neighbors. We have a lot of girls on our street, and they adore Faith Ann. Of course, Hunter and Trent continue to be sidekicks!

We have been to lots of cookie parties, gift exchanges, church events, etc! We are loving the joys and excitement of the season. We have a block party this week, Bible study party, and a friends dinner. In all of this fun, may we remember and honor the love of Jesus!! CHRISTmas is a wonderful time, and we are forever grateful!

From our Family of 5

Merry Christmas!! We are in the final countdown until the big day! This is our first Christmas as a family of 5, and possibly our first Christmas with our completed family?! Scott and I are totally eating up these days. We are not looking ahead, we are just in the moment with our beautiful children!

We are excited about the upcoming week as we embrace the childhood joys of Christmas! Their joy and happiness is unmatchable! Merry Christmas...especially to my sweet Faith Ann, as she joins us for her first Christmas! My next post will be loaded with Christmas pictures from our many festivities- in the meantime, here is our Christmas card with our biggest blessings!