Christmas Eve

My brother has always wanted to celebrate Christmas eve eve so this year we hopefully started a new tradition and went out to eat in the 23rd.  My aunt and uncle from south Florida got here (for the holidays) just in time to join us.  We had an ice meal and then went back to our house for dessert and coffee.   On Christmas eve we go to Dennis’s parent’s house for dinner and presents.  She has us divide into teams and play a Pictionary-type  game and this year had the kids throw Christmas cards into a laundry basket (which they secretly loved and I won!):) After Dinner, when the kids can’t wait any longer, we open gifts.  Later that night we went back home, got in our PJs, Tracked Santa on NORAD, Read The Alabama Night Before Christmas and set out milk and cookies. When the kids were asleep, Dennis and I took out the 46 inch TV we had been hiding and quietly set it up.

!!! Just had a HUGE scare- I went to find pictures for this part of the blog and ALL my December pictures were GONE!  I had DELETED them instead of the ones on the camera card! Luckily I caught it in time and could pull them out of the “recycle bin” I almost threw up! !!!!  

   

Playing “Pictionary”

Autumn and her favorite cousin

Lauren and I both got Easy Bake Ovens and I got the girls the aprons they are wearing….I smell baking days ahead!

The boys got Auburn clothes and nerf guns

THINGS ONE….Ryan and Caleb in old football jerseys belonging to Brent and Kenny

and THINGS TWO….Grant and Corbin in old overalls Sandra dug out

Autumn loved her apron and pots and pans we got her

The whole gang

Gingerbread Fun

Candy on the floor, Icing on the table, clothes and mouths…colored sugar everywhere….But we had a blast making Gingerbread houses today.  The boys cousins: Corbin, Caleb, Lauren, Autumn and Katie came over to help.  We had four teams of kids and one team of moms!  The gingerbread houses were judged in the categories of Most original, Prettiest, wackiest, Craziest, most delectable, and most creative.  The teams were:  1) Preston and Autumn (although she was not much help) 2) Grant and Corbin (the most impatient)  3) Ryan and Caleb (the most patient) 4) Katie and Lauren (the girly crew) and 5) us MOMS: Michelle, Nicki and Melanie.  Two of the houses were pre-built and much easier to decorate.  Poor Grant and Corbin's house collapsed several times even with toothpicks to hold it together.  Ryan and Caleb’s house needed some reinforcement also but stayed together.  Everyone had fun and that’s what counts. 

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Katie and Lauren

Grant and Corbin

Preston (and Autumn :))

Ryan and Caleb

Nicki, Michelle and Melanie

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The Finished Houses: (left to Right) Preston/Autumn, Katie/Lauren, Ryan/Caleb, the mom house, Grant/Corbin

Holiday Ball

It was a time to dress up and have a night out to ourselves.  Dennis and I went to the Ft Rucker Holiday Ball with 500 of our “closest friends”.  It was fun.  I was the DD which was good b/c Dennis had a wee bit too much wine (it was free!).  The whole room sang different parts of the 12 Days of Christmas which was very funny.  Dinner, dancing, socializing.  Here are a few pictures…before, during, but none after :)

 

Before we left, by our Christmas tree

Dennis with a few work buddies

Jacket off to show Party Shirt!

Church Christmas Programs

I helped put together the children’s program at our church.  We were a little late getting started and the program we ordered took a while to get here so I was a bit stressed about the kids learning the songs and motions etc. in time.  We put the words on a power point so they could read them and had the parts done by puppets so the “puppeteers” could just read and not have to memorize.  We also cut out some motions and 2 whole songs.  The kids had only practiced with the CD that has the children singing already on it but that night they did it with just the accompaniment CD AND….they did great!! I was so impressed and so was everyone else!  We had a large group of kids aged 3-12.  I am glad it is over but it was fun and I was very proud of them all.  Ryan and Grant both had puppet parts and sang the songs.  It was called A STRANGER IN THE MANGER and had some really cute songs. 

The Group before….

Me, getting them in place

 

And our BIG finish…it was kind of like the 12 days of Christmas…they held up the words for each one…”the shepherds were frightened, Mary was smiling , Joseph was thankful”….etc.

 

Preston participated with the youth group.  They did some Christmas songs with a hip/hop type flare.  They did good but (like teenagers) did not sing loud or want to do movements so it was a bit dull.

Preston (far right)

Cool Light a Candle song…can’t see Preston in this one

Preston with candle raised

Ho HO Ho….do we have to?

My grown up boys did NOT want to sit with Santa at Dennis’s unit Christmas party so we all went up together and had to beg, plead and pull (Ryan)! But they did it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ryan took this one!

“O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree”

I have never heard of a TREE TOUR but I liked the idea so I am copying my friend and letting you “tour” our tree.  We had to decorate quickly one Saturday morning and the kids were really into it but it was like they were 2 yrs old again….all the ornaments were right in front!  I had to rearrange some and really need to do more. It was also the first time we have decorated on hard wood floors.  After the 2nd ornament broke, I got a huge soft blanket and put it around the tree to break the fall!  The boys each have a box of ornaments they made in school, and ornaments we have collected the past years.  They were so cute looking in their boxes and talking about each one!  Really made me feel like a great mom for doing that all these years.  I heard a line on a comedy show last week that stuck with me.  The mom said, “you know, as a mom you are only as happy as your saddest kid”  Which was meant to be funny but is so true.  Luckily all my boys were happy and still love decorating the tree.  It was a memory I hope I will always remember.  So here are a few pictures we took that morning as well as our Tree Tour.  I do not have a finished picture of the tree b/c Dennis needs to cut the top branch and move our star down….it is way over the top of the tree and looks silly!  Hope you enjoyed decorating your trees too.

Looking through their boxes and sharing memories!

Decorating the tree

Had to get Dennis in a picture

Our Tree Tour

 

A Bride and Groom :1991 the year we got married and had our first tree

Preston’s First Christmas 1996…he was in a santa suit!

I made several of these ornaments out of one of Dennis’s grandmothers old worn out quilts and gave them as gifts to his family (in 1991 or 2 I think)

One that was on my tree growing up and my mom gave to me when I got married.  My Dad’s mother made it. I have more that she made and a few of the same type that my mom’s mother made.

Hard to read but one of Grant’s first Christmas ornaments 1997

Ryan’s first ornament

We have several different kinds like this but this was the first one when we were a complete family.  I like how Ryan is the smallest and Preston is the biggest of the kid reindeer!

I found this one a few years ago…my 3 Bears (boys)

Yes that is an Easter egg!  When we lived in Maryland we went to a tree farm every year and cut down our own tree.  One year as were were getting it into the house, an Easter egg rolled out with 50 cents in it.  I sent the tree farm a note and they wrote back that they have a hunt in the tree fields every year and that one must not have been found the last Spring! We put it in the tree every year now!

This is my Maryland Santa.  When we lived in Texas, I found a shop that sold these in the shape of every state so I bought one for Texas and Alabama.  When we moved to Maryland, I called the shop and they sent me this one.

Blurry picture but the name tag says LTC GRIFFIN I got this Army Bear the year Dennis was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel.  We have others from the units we have been in all these years.

Just one of my favorites that we have had for a long time.  It is plastic….I broke my other favorite glass one this year similar to this one :(

 

Hope you enjoyed the tour of our family tree.  Many more have special memories and I did not even look at my Santa tree in the dining room….maybe next year!