Christmas 2011

This was our second year to have Christmas at home, and we LOVED it! Leslie, Philip, Mitchell, and my Dad all joined us on Friday, and Susan and John came down on Saturday. Ross cooked a delicious meal for us on Christmas Eve before we headed to the Christmas Eve service at our church, Gateway Community Church. Then we came home, ate some more, and let the kids open one present before sending the them off to bed.

In the process of getting ready for bed, Jackson left cookies and water out for Santa, which he told me Santa needed to share with his reindeer. Then we said "goodbye" and "see you next year" to our Elf on the Shelf, Henry. All three kids were worn out from playing so hard all day, so they crashed!

The next morning Jackson and Audrey woke up at 6:00 on the dot and were excited to see what Santa brought them. They must have been good this year because they got exactly what they asked for! Jackson got his fishing pole and umbrella!

And Audrey got her dollhouse and an umbrella too!

Mitchell was pretty excited about his truck and the "itkawa" (AKA motorcycle) he'd gotten the night before!

After playing with their Santa gifts for a while, we took a break for breakfast. When Susan and John arrived, the present opening began, and oh. my. goodness...there were a LOT of presents to be opened! We had to move our coffee table out of the living room to give everyone a little extra room!

Some of the favorite gifts included puzzles made from pictures my Dad, AKA Pop, drew of the kids; their very own luggage; a sleeping bag and a baby for Audrey; and a hot wheels wall track and legos for JD! I think they were a little overwhelmed by the time we finished unwrapping the last gifts, but they loved every moment! It was so much fun to have everyone here!

Everyone except my Dad headed out around lunch time. JD and Audrey spent the entire day in their pajamas, and after nap time, we went back through all of their gifts and played and played and played! Pop left in the mid-afternoon after a fun game of Old Maid with Jackson, which JD won!

It was a fantastic Christmas for us, and at the end of the day when we asked JD if he remembered what Christmas was all about and why we give presents, he sweetly replied, "It's Jesus' birthday!"

More pictures in the album as always!