After trimming the tree, we started the Christmas season with my (I thought) clever plan of taking pictures of the children sleeping for the Christmas card so I wouldn't have a repeat of 2009.
Things began cherubically
but sleeping big kids are kind of disheveled.
and the flash made Evelyn grimace.
So, I moved on to posing some shots.
Again, Adelaide was pretty easy, although quite committed to my original "sleeping child" idea
I'm in a stocking.... zzzzzzzzzz.
Evelyn loves to take pictures, but is also easily distracted. Here she's trying to figure out how to put Santa on the sleigh.
This was adorable but we ultimately decided it was too bare for the US Postal Service.
There we go! Matilda did a splendid job posing for the card this year and I let her eat the candy cane when we were done.
The first Sunday of Advent our church hosted an Advent wreath making brunch after the service. The kids enjoyed donuts and fruit and Matilda really loved helping to make the wreath. It was a bit more challenging with Evelyn, the event lasted much longer than her attention span, but she did help put a few decorations on our family wreath and she loved lighting the candles at dinner time, singing happy birthday Jesus (every night for 28 nights) and blowing out the candles.
After collecting the supplies, Daddy showed the girls how to put the greens into the floral foam
Matilda did a great job sticking the boxwood and assorted greenery into the wreath and really seemed to enjoy herself.
Evelyn was much more interested in running around, hiding under the table and tickling Daddy with the wreath supplies.
Tada! Thats our wreath! We put the candles in at home.
Silly Evelyn!
In mid-December, Ms. Nina, the director of the Little Cherubs church choir, hosted a "Happy birthday, Jesus!" party following choir practice. There were little tables set up in the youth lounge, a buffet with cheeses, fruit, veggies, meatballs, deli meats and lots of sweets, fancy candy canes at each place, punch, and even a birthday cake. Ms. Nina invited the siblings to attend too and made (and wrapped!) a blanket for every child (even the siblings who are not in the choir!) The kids sang songs, read a story, unwrapped their blankets and enjoyed the goodies. After the party, we took the girls to visit Santa at our neighborhood store. He was a jolly santa with a real beard!
Evelyn was scared and pulled a Randy.
Matilda was determined to be VERY good.
Matilda and Santa chatted for just a minute.
She assured him she was a good girl and asked for a princess doll.
We did so many fun things getting ready for the big day! We purchased a large Advent calendar from noel eternelle in Montreal last July and put a candy in each door for the girls. They loved opening the doors to find their treat and count down to the big day! We read tons of Christmas books--we added a few to our collection this year, including How the Grinch Stole Christmas. The girls watched Charlie Brown Christmas and Frosty the Snowman a million times along with some Christmas specials of their favorite pre-school shows, but Matilda found the Grinch movie to be too scary. I watched Polar Express with them as well, but there were some parts Matilda found too frightening and we had to fast forward.
We baked cookies... LOTS of cookies. And we worked on Christmas crafts. The girls made Ruldoph, Frosty and Santa faces on paper plates with foam stickers, created plastic snow globes, decorated gift bags, and helped make hot chocolate gift sets for Kim and Eric and Grandma and Grandpa to put under the tree. With Kim's help, they also made penguin ornaments. Daddy and Adelaide made a little footprint ornament for her first christmas and I put together a photo ornament for her as well as a calendar and framed some of her birthday pictures for the family.
Matilda's cherub choir sang twice this December, once on the 18th and again at the Christmas Eve service. Kim and Eric arrived on Christmas Eve and the whole family attended the service followed by a nice dinner at Grandma and Grandpa's house. After dinner, we went home to get cleaned up for bed and feed Adelaide. Then Daddy read Twas the Night Before Christmas to the girls and we opened the last day on the Advent calendar where the girls found an extra special candy--chocolate covered marshmallows! The big girls hung their stockings by the fireplace and went to bed. Kim, Eric, Ed and I stayed up until midnight wrapping presents, filling stockings and getting the house ready for guests the next day.
Christmas morning, the tree was absolutely stuffed with gifts from Santa, grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, and friends. We kept the girls upstairs until grandma and grandpa arrived, but they were so excited when they woke up and realized Santa had left a gift in their bedrooms. I was washing dishes when I heard Matilda yell "Santa came! Mommy, did Jesus find you!?" It was so cute. He left each girl a "Zhu Zhu Pet" which is just a little robotic hamster that rolls around and makes funny noises. Adorably, they seemed satisfied (until we got downstairs) with the idea that that might be all Santa got for them!
When they saw all the gifts they were a bit overwhelmed, I think. Matilda was delighted that Santa remembered to bring her a princess doll. There were so many gifts that the girls ran out of steam and stopped opening 1/2 way through and had to come back and finish later with Grandma. Everyone seemed pleased with their gifts and the trinkets in their stockings. It was a fun morning. Once the unwrapping was over and cleaned up, I made gingerbread waffles. Even the girls were brave enough to try them this year and it's a Christmas tradition I have no intention of abandoning!
There was plenty of food this year. Ed ordered a Jamon Serano from Spain, along with a stand and special knife to make the delectable delicate slices. There were also 100 oysters overnighted to our door that he and Eric expertly shucked, displayed on a bed of rock salt and slurped down. There were cookies and candies galore, cheese, olives, and dolmas. For dinner we served prime rib roast with port wine sauce, turkey breast, gravy, creamed spinach, potatoes au gratin and home made dinner rolls, accompanied by a Jeroboam of champagne (4 bottles) Shanti and Laura joined us for Christmas dinner and the conversation and company were delightful.
I am sure that there are pictures and videos somewhere of the advent calendar and
maybe cookies and the cherub choir and the ham and the whole family at Christmas Eve dinner...
but I can't find them. Once I unearth them, I'll add them here for posterity.
My gift from Jim and Joanne (photography backdrop and lighting kit) came in a bag so large we couldn't resist putting the family into it!
Evelyn is the only kid I know who is excited to receive clothing as a gift, here's one of the many princess nightgowns she got and wants to wear constantly.
In the days following Christmas the girls had a blast playing with their new toys and with their relatives. On the 29th, Jim, Eric, Kim and Edward went to Milwaukee for a basketball game and the girls and I had a quiet afternoon and evening at home unwinding from all the festivities. On the 30th Ed left for California to watch the Rose Bowl. My dad came out on the 31st to visit and help out with the girls.
By the 3rd of January our decorations were put away, our guests had all returned home, Ed was back in town and life has gone back to normal. It's always sad to see Christmas go, especially such a fun one that the girls were so excited about, but I know next year will be even better now that Matilda and Evelyn are old enough to remember what we did this year. It's wonderful to be building our family traditions and lovely memories for years to come.
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