Christmas 2018

I don't know who was more excited for Christmas this year: Ashton or the parents. We were just excited to see their reactions to the presents and all the fun we'd have celebrating. Ashton went to bed that night and wished it could be Christmas every day. This year was great with her. She was excited for presents but not too much that it annoyed me. She knows why we celebrate Christmas and thankfully wasn't too fixated on opening gifts.

We kicked off Christmas week with a dinner with the Coon's. We've had them over for dinner nearly every Christmas in Lake Jackson so we decided to continue that tradition by having it a few days earlier We love visiting with the Coon's as the four oldest kids just go play. Gemma even played and chased a little too. We decorated gingerbread houses and just played and talked. I'm already looking forward to it next year again.

First attempt at star bread. It was so good that I made two more for Christmas day.

Apple pie with Christmas lights on top. It turned out better than I thought.

Christmas eve was quieter at home. We took the kids on a walk to look at Christmas lights and then did our traditional "Jerusalem" dinner with pita bread, hummus, vegetables, grape juice, etc. Then we opened our Christmas Eve box of new jammies, a new movie, and yummy treats. I found the perfect pajamas for Tanner and Ashton this year and knew they'd be thrilled. Gemma got "new to her" pajamas from hand-me-downs. Good thing she doesn't care.

Found NASA rocket ship pajamas on sale and knew he'd love them. He wears them constantly now.

Christmas morning was great with the kids. All the kids slept much longer than I thought, which was a nice treat. Gemma missed the first gift opening so she got her own time later in the morning.

I didn't get many pictures and the ones I got are dark because that room doesn't have a big light. Tanner got a rocket ship for one present.

Ashton's excitement over a doll that you can do the hair and makeup for. She's been wanting it since we visited Wisconsin and saw it in a magazine. Thankfully, my parents heard her pleas for it and sent it as her gift.

As a family, we try hard to encourage our children to look forward to giving gifts, not just receiving. We do several things during the holiday season to encourage this such as purchasing gifts for a family in need and giving gifts to the parents and the siblings. We spent lots of time one-on-one working with Ashton and Tanner to think of what would be good gifts for each other, Gemma, and Mom and Dad. It was really fun to see their creativity and their ideas this season.

Ashton and Tanner made me a fleece tie blanket (Joseph did most of the tying). They each chose a fleece fabric and Tanner chose a rocket ship one while Ashton did a floral design. I loved it! Ashton got Joseph a special Wii remote that allows them to play certain Wii games together. She got Tanner a tool set, which he carries around fixing things. Tanner got Ashton a really fun game that they both enjoy playing together. Tanner spent a long time in the tool section at Walmart picking Joe's new tool out. He decided on a HUGE pipe wrench. I'm sure we will never use it but it's the thought that counts. Together, Ashton and Tanner decided to make a cardboard tunnel for Gemma and to get our old ball pit back out for her. I enjoyed watching them open each other's gifts and for them to see the joy in gift-giving.

The gift I was most excited about for the kids was our Grimm's gift. Grimm's is a German company that makes wooden toys. I've been eyeing them for a while and decided to make a purchase for Christmas when I found one on sale earlier this year. I look forward to adding more to the collection in future years. We've been enjoying building Grimm's creations the last couple days.

Christmas morning was spent playing with our new toys and cleaning up the house to host a Christmas dinner. We had two families over for dinner and enjoyed our time with them. I made our traditional birthday cake for Jesus Christ and we sang happy birthday to Him.

First attempt at decorating with chocolate. It went pretty well except for chocolate on the floor.