Christmas Morning

I have always loved Christmas.  I remember being so excited that I couldn't sleep when I was a kid.  You would think that would go away as an adult, but it might actually be worse.  I couldn't sleep.  I couldn't wait for the kids to wake up.  Wyatt and Jonah were up before 6 AM, but since Caitlyn was sick we let her sleep for a while before we woke her up.  I love seeing their faces when they see what Santa brought them.  Jonah got his "Flash Rider" that he wanted, Wyatt got a wiggle car and Caitlyn got a new bike.  I took way too many pictures, so here we go!

Wyatt and Jonah were excited with their remote control cars.

They had fun looking through their stockings and then they were ready to open presents.  Wyatt kept saying, "Santa come down the chimney, bring presents."  The first present the kids open is always a box with pictures of Christ in it along with our lists of what gifts we are going to give our Savior this year.  We try to find ways to remember the true meaning of Christmas.

We bought them too much, even though I promise I won't every year.  Caitlyn was really excited with her easy bake set.  She has had fun making us all cakes. Wyatt loved his "Magna Doodle" and fishing puzzle.  Jonah was excited with his new Lego sets and his sword and shield set.

They all loved their new stuffed animals.

The snuggies were a big hit with Caitlyn and Jonah.  Wyatt wasn't so sure about it.  Wyatt and Jonah both loved their new Star Wars slippers.  Wyatt wouldn't even take them off for bed and when he finally did he wanted to sleep with them.

Caitlyn got a lot of art supplies and art sets and a new book that she was really excited about.  She wins the prize for the most fun to watch open her presents.

She would get so excited about each one.  She had to show it to us and tell us how much she loved it.  She is so fun to give presents to because she loves everything she gets and she is very appreciative.

They also got some wii games and movies.

I love the excitement when they see their presents.

Wyatt had fun opening presents.  He was really excited with this broom Jonah gave him.

I think he got a little overwhelmed.  He didn't want any pictures taken and he got really cranky.  After a break, he was ready to finish opening his presents.

Grandma and grandpa Ham stopped by to see what the kids got and give them their presents.  Caitlyn and Jonah were really excited with their new roller blades.

Wyatt loved his Leap Frog letters pad that they brought him.  He has spent a lot of time playing with it.

During Keith's graduation party the kids were playing with these giant blocks and had a great time.  I found some and was really excited to buy them, but surprisingly Keith wasn't that excited about them.  I talked him into it (of course) so I really hope the kids play with them so Keith can't say, "I told you so!" Jonah had fun building a big tower with them.

I made Keith a desk calender with pictures of the kids.  He likes to have one for his desk at work.

We cleared out the kitchen so the boys could ride around on their new toys. 

It was a cold, snowy day, but Jonah couldn't wait to get outside and try out his new flash rider.  I think he will have a lot of fun with it.

Caitlyn finally put her art stuff away long enough to try out her new bike.  We had fun playing with the kids and their new toys all afternoon before we headed to my mom's for dinner.  We had a wonderful Christmas.  We spent today putting Christmas decorations away and cleaning up the house (oh my goodness it was a mess!) Tomorrow morning I am going to have my gall bladder removed.  I'm not looking forward to it, but I am looking forward to being finished with the pain I have had over the past few years.  The timing worked out well since Keith is off work and our insurance will cover the whole thing if we fit it in by the end of the year.  I just found out I needed this done a couple of weeks ago so I am very grateful I found a surgeon to take care of it so quickly. 

Hallee's First Christmas

I have so many pictures of Christmas morning that I am going to have to break them up.  Here are the pictures of Hallee.  She slept through the kids opening their presents, which was perfect so I could just focus on her when she woke up.  She was a great sport and we got through most of her presents before she had her bottle.  She wasn't quite sure what was going on at first.

I love that smile.  She got a little excited when I kept handing her things out of her stocking.

She was pretty interested in the presents.  She was trying to rip the paper.  I think she liked the sound the paper made when she grabbed it.

She was really happy when she realized she could put it in her mouth.  I had to watch her really close to make sure she didn't bite off any little pieces of paper.

She got a lot of cute clothes. 

I love her face here.  She may not be excited about her new sleepers, but I am!

It was so fun to experience her first Christmas.  I know she doesn't understand, but I loved watching her and seeing her reactions to things.

I had to buy her this toy even though we have way too many baby toys.  She loves the soft fabric toys and this one is so cute.  It was a big hit with her.  She loves to play with it.

She also enjoyed eating the tag!

After a few presents we stopped and let her eat her bottle, then I helped her open the rest of her presents.  Luckily the older kids were busy playing with their new toys so they weren't in her face trying to take over.

I sure love this girl!

Looks like she did pretty well on the presents. 

I made her model some of her new outfits.  I couldn't pass this one up in the store.

She gave me a present and slept through Christmas dinner.  She needed a longer nap, but at least I got to eat dinner without trying to stop her from grabbing my plate.

I tried to put her back down, but she just wanted to play.  I think she had a great first Christmas. 

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve is probably my favorite day of the year.  I loved all of our traditions growing up and now my kids love them.  We fit both families in so we have a busy day.  We started out at Keith's parents.  We had fun visiting, eating food, playing games, singing songs (this tradition is slowing growing on me!), acting out the nativity and opening presents. 

The kids were all really excited with their presents.  We had a fun time and were glad that everyone was able to get together.

Hallee slept through most of the evening.  She doesn't sleep well when she isn't in her bed at home so she got a few naps throughout the afternoon and evening.

After Keith's family party, we headed over to my parent's house for more fun.  Wyatt was so excited and had fun showing off for everyone.  He always gets plenty of attention from his cousins and he is happy to show off for them.  I think it was a little overwhelming for him though because he would be happy as can be one minute and all of a sudden get really upset and run over and hug me. 

We acted out the Nativity again.  Jonah was Joseph.

Caitlyn was the angel.  Poor Caitlyn didn't feel well.  She had the croup and was up the night before.  She was so sad that she was sick for Christmas. She prayed that night that she would be better for Christmas day.  She felt much better on Christmas and said, "He answered my prayers!"

Wyatt didn't want to be in the nativity until he found out he could be a wise man with EJ and Elijah.  Here he is telling me to, "ssshhh" because they had already started.

He loved being with the big boys.  He was a little distracting because he kept running around Mary and Joseph laughing.  Then all of the sudden he got shy and ran over and hugged me.  Funny kid!

Grandma and grandpa always show us a video about Christ and grandma always reads a story that teaches us about giving.  It is good to focus on the true meaning of Christmas.  After that we head upstairs for Christmas Bingo. 

Wyatt was really excited to play this year.  He seemed so old with all the big kids.

Caitlyn and Jonah were excited about their new jump ropes. While the kids play bingo in the kitchen with grandma the adults are in the dining room playing with grandpa.

Next, we head back downstairs for the grab box.  Wyatt refused to get in the picture and was upset until someone handed him his present.  The kids all loved their new books.

The adults get a grab box too.  We all love our gift cards!

The last thing we do is listen to grandpa read, "Twas the Night Before Christmas."  Jonah sat behind him and ended up taking over and reading most of the story. 

Poor Caitlyn was feeling really bad at this point.  She just laid on the floor and looked miserable.  Even though she didn't feel well she still had fun.  I love all of the family traditions that make Christmas Eve so much fun.

Baby Cereal

Yesterday Hallee got some rice cereal in her stocking so we decided to let her try some. 

She wasn't sure about it at first and pulled all the usual faces for a baby trying something new.

She wasn't quite sure what to do at first.

Then she realized it tasted good! 

She did a really good job at swallowing it.  She didn't spit very much out.  We started feeding Caitlyn food at four months and she was not ready.  We have waited with the rest of them and it is so much better when they are actually ready!

Cereal was definitely a hit.  This girl loves her food!