Christmas 2016

Tis the season to be Merry!  

With all of us dressed up, we headed straight to church for the Christmas Eve candlelight service.

Church was to begin at 3:30

We all got in the car and MK asked, "Mom, are we really going to miss half of the service?"

Me: "Um, no, we are going to be there early.  No worries."

Ryan: "You do know church starts at 3:00, right?"

UMMMMM

NO

Had NO idea.

After a quick search on my phone, I realized we were going to be late....definitely NOT early as planned.

And to make it worse, when we did arrive, we were sent to the "overflow" room so I felt as if I was in timeout for not being on time.

 Alas, Christmas Eve it was and I wasn't going to let a little lateness ruin the evening for everyone.  We were at church, that was the most important part.

 And to make our Christmas even more special, my parents were here with us for Christmas!  We love it when they are here with us.....

 the children were able open their Christmas pjs and books....

 and all gave a thumbs up!

 Feeding the reindeer is always a must-do on Christmas Eve....

 And the traditional reading of Twas The Night Before Christmas....

only, this year, someone put the actual book in an odd spot where it could not be found so Pop read the story from his phone!  And then he read Maryn's book to all six!

 This Maddox.  Love her.  She is surely telling Pop something very important!  

 And Gran happily read to Chapman....Chapman LOVES books and Gran does too!

 Christmas Morning

 The children all waited patiently on Gran and Pop!

 Pop had to do his traditional check to be sure Santa was all gone before the children were allowed to come down the stairs and take a peek at the goodies Santa had left for them!

 MK was soo excited and was the first to round the corner and squeal in pure delight!

 The rest followed quickly behind.....

 Xbox and Clothes...what more do two teenage boys need?

 And a new tricycle for our smallest little....

 Maddox adores the stories of Mrs. Piggle Wiggle and she asked for the books for Christmas....

 And this sweet Maryn...a scooter equipped with a bell was just what she needed!

 This boy right here loves his baby sister!  He even climbed into her new little house and played with her for a bit!  She was super excited!

 And Chapman is all about helping Finley out....she knew he needed a treat so she was doing her best to get them open for him....

 MK loves to help with anything in the kitchen....

 Christmas morning was no exception....she helped make the Monkey Bread and quiche and fruit...she was quite a busy bee!

 The sleigh bells were strewn about our yard on Christmas morning!

 Chapman acted as if this was her 10th Christmas....she was all about her stocking and her gifts!

 Lottery tickets....but we didn't win.....

 Maryn and her stick on nails....this girl loves anything and everything fashion!

 Maddox made a special gift for Gran this year....

 and she could not wait to see Gran unwrap it Christmas morning!  It is a mug with a picture that Maddox drew all by herself!  The sweetness of this is that Maddox actually purchased the mug for herself.  Then, she brought it home from school and said, "Mom, Mrs. Roberston (Maddox's teacher) said that Christmas is about Jesus and giving to others so I would like to give this mug to Gran because she LOVES mugs and coffee!"  I asked her several times if she was sure and she was so confident that she was supposed to give the mug to Gran!  I am proud of this little lady and her big heart!

 Oh this sweet baby.  She was so happy when she had a gift to unwrap.  

 Maddox and the nails and the "hang-down earrings"....it is just her!

 Maryn and everything dress-up....

 MK equaled pure joy on Christmas Day!

Each year the children are given a combined gift from us and we always have a game to go with it.  This year the game was to unwrap a gazillion gifts while wearing oven mitts....classic.  

 A girl and her thumb....precious.

 Virtual reality....this is the silliest looking thing to me but one of the most fun gifts received on Christmas Day.

 Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer....Gran has the best stocking stuffers!

 Backing up a bit....Christmas Eve traditions are some of our favorites!  It is just me and the kiddos....we get pedicures and this year was Maryn's very first time at the nail salon to get her nails done!  Last year she went with us but she was too scared of the bubbly water!  

 It is a time that we all look forward to....the boys love it because of the massaging chairs, I am thinking they could sit there all day!

 They say next year they are going to get their big toenail painted....you heard it here first!

 Maddox spent her nail time catching up with selfies....

 and Maryn played every game that could have possibly ever existed on this little tablet.....

 three sets of nails....perfection!

 Following our pedicures, it was off to Target for a moment just to be sure we weren't missing anything and to just be in the middle of the chaos....and after that, we met Mrs. Duncan at Panera for our traditional Christmas Eve lunch....and she brought goodies for all!

 Christmas Eve photo with Gran and Pop

 And this little reindeer....

 And this is the aftermath....and it looked like this for a few days....my always put together home looked just like this for more than a day and I looked the other way...that, my friends, is amazing.

 And this sweet baby....she just melts me.  She is 99% sweet and 1% a mess.  We all continue to just soak up every moment with her!