A Recap of Advent and Christmas

I can honestly say that our Christmas was wonderful. And, I can honestly say that I am SO grateful to be done eating rice and beans for dinner every night. I like rice and beans. I do. But, after eating them for a month straight, the beans started to make my stomach churn a little. For some reason, it was harder for me this year than it was last year. The kids were amazing with it again though - not one single complaint out of them. They loved going through the World Vision catalogs each night as they ate their rice and beans. That was such a great addition this year and definitely one that we will continue. It made the "giving presents to Jesus" even more tangible, since they were literally getting to pick out their own presents for Jesus. Every night as we sat eating our rice and beans, they would explore the catalog, deciding what they thought would be best to spend the money on. They each had their own ideas and took their decisions very seriously. They loved it. On Christmas morning, I placed pictures of the things they had chosen around the manger. I was hoping to have them open the World Vision cards that were supposed to come, explaining the significance of each gift they had chosen, but those didn't arrive in time. It will still be fun for them to receive those cards in the mail though.

Another great addition this year was our advent candle wreath. I love that Jay made it for us, and I loved adding a candle to it each night. It made such a perfect centerpiece and was a beautiful way to count down the days until Christmas. I loved that it was a little brighter each night as we anticipated celebrating the coming of our Saviour. Jay spent hours and hours making some extra ones to give away as gifts, and I hope that those we gave it to will enjoy it next year!

We spent Christmas Eve at my parents house with most of my family, and the kids had a great time. My parents had bought each of the kids some sort of costume, so Jake spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day as a pirate, and Addi alternated between being a renaissance princess and wearing the new outfit that matches her new doll from my parents. She also spent some time in the new pink and black tutu from our neighbors. We were never sure which of the outfits she would come out in next.

Here they are with our neighbors, before heading to my parents house. This is Addi in the new outfit that she got as a present from them.

Jay's parents arrived Christmas Eve, and we were able to spend a little time with them that night as well. We then spent the rest of the night (until the wee hours of the morning) putting finishing touches on our Christmas Day plans - sanding candle-holders, preparing casseroles, decorating, getting the treasure hunt ready, etc.

Christmas morning went like this. It started with our treasure hunt, following the star to find Baby Jesus. The kids then got to open the presents that they had bought for each other, which was sooo cute. Addi had picked out a couple of coloring pictures for Jake and a whoopee cushion. The whoopee cushion was a huge hit and did not get old ALL DAY for them. Jake had chosen a little wooden car for Addi that she can put together (with Daddy's help) and paint. They were so excited to give their gifts to each other that they had picked out and purchased with their own money.

At breakfast, we finished up the final day stories for our Jesse Tree and advent calendar Christmas story.

We then did our Christmas morning ding-dong-ditch deliveries. This mostly included some cinnamon rolls to a couple of neighbors and a couple of advent wreaths that we lit and left on doorsteps. The ding-dong-ditch deliveries are a highlight of Christmas for us. It's such a fun way to surprise people on Christmas morning, and the kids love it. It's just fun to leave something for people and then try to run away and not get caught. I wish I had some video of it, but it's too hard to try to video, and run, and hide, all at the same time.






Jay's parents then met us back at the house for the rest of the day's activities, and the kids had a great time with them. When we got back, we gave each of the kids their present from us. Jake got an erector set, which is definitely JAY's favorite toy ever, and Addi got some Polly Pockets. Jake is REALLY into Legos and is amazing at following the directions and putting the sets together, so we thought that he might be ready to take it up a notch and try an erector set. He loves the idea of it, and is so excited to build things with motors, but unfortunately, they're not kidding about that age 8+ on the box. Those things are really hard to put together, even for Jay, who can put anything together. I thought that if there was any 6 year old out there who could do it, it would be Jake, but he will definitely need some assistance with it. He and Jay spent much of the day working on that together and Addi spent much of the day changing outfits and playing with her new Polly Pockets with Nana.




Jake did take a break to put together his awesome new Lego set from Nana and Papa which he, of course, loves. Once he started that, he didn't stop for anything until it was finished. Addi got some clothes from Nana and Papa, so she can add that to her rotation! We played out in the hood for a bit, having some marshmallow shooter wars and watching neighborhood kids fly by in their new go-carts. Yes, we live in Orange County, and children here receive as presents go-carts that go 35 mph...and had to be picked up in Las Vegas because apparently they are not "street legal" here in California.

So, that's it for now. We had a great time with the kids, a great time with our family, and a great time celebrating the birth of Christ. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!