The Four Days of Christmas

Day One:

Our Christmas festivities started on the 23rd.  We decided to have our family Christmas at home that day.  The kids each got matching jammies, a new outfit, a new toy, and some stocking stuffers!

Stocking Stuffers!  New sippy cups, a Barbie, and Princess and the Frog!

 Hannah got toddler princess dolls!  These seemed to be the hot item everywhere this year!

  Jacob got Toy Story 3 Mr. Potato Heads!  I don't know who was most excited about these!!!

 Homemade doughnuts have become our Christmas tradition.  Hannah got to help this year!

 We hung out all day at home, and I made a fancy dinner that night and even broke out the good china! 

 I made some goodies for all of our church volunteers.  

These Santa cookies were pretty simple to make out of Nutter Butters!

Day Two:

We spent the 24th at Josh's mom and step-dad's house.  

Grandma Jody got Jacob and Landon matching outfits, and she got Hannah a beautiful dress!  

 Josh with his brothers, Tristan and Jordan.

Hannah got to go on a special trip with Grandpa Bob.  He took her to Barnes and Noble and got her some new Fancy Nancy books!  She was so excited!!!

 Grandma Jody!

 Hannah got new jammies and wanted to put them on over her dress!

 Hannah also got a couple more toddler princess dolls with matching dress-ups!

 Jacob skipped both naps that day.  I thought he might go to sleep in the middle of the floor!

 This year, Jacob got the BIG present under the tree!  It was a train table!!!

 

Hannah's big present was a twin bed!  Grandpa and Grandma had saved a nice bunk bed for the kids, and they got her a new mattress and bedding!

Stockings at Josh's mom's house!

 Day Three:

On the 25th, we went to church in the morning.  It seems like we should get to do that every year!  Then, we headed to Champaign to celebrate with Josh's dad's side of the family.

 Hannah got some dollhouse furniture, books, games, etc.  

Jacob got a Buzz Lightyear, some GeoTrax for his train table, and an activity table.

 We framed pictures of the grandkids for Josh's mom and for Josh's dad. 

 Hannah and Jacob had fun playing in Aunt Becky's cabinets!  I'm pretty sure we lost Jacob's pacifier in one of them...

 Hannah would only take a sassy picture... how fitting...

 Day Four:

On the 26th, we celebrated with my family!  Since there are five kids in my family and we all have a significant other, and we now have a few kids, there are A LOT of gifts!  We might have to start exchanging names or something in the coming years... These are just the gifts that wouldn't fit around the tree!  

 

I went for comfort and wore my new Adidas sweatsuit that Josh's mom got me!  

 

 Grandma Teresa made Hannah a Tiana dress!  This girl loves her dress-ups!!!

Grandma was still working on the overskirt.  It is beautiful!

Aunt Emily got her an adorable snow hat!  The kids got lots of nice gifts.  We were very excited to get a Little People nativity set from Great Uncle Art and Great Aunt Linda!  It was something I really wanted to get the kids but we didn't ask anyone for it.  We were surprised to get it!!!  My mom and dad also got them a Little People Zoo, which seems to be a hit!  Fisher-Price really loves us this year (the train table, the nativity, the GeoTrax, the dollhouse furniture, the minivan, the play phone & camera, the zoo, etc.... all Fisher-Price!).  

After 4 days of going strong, the kids were TIRED.  Jacob handled this by curling up on my parents' living room floor (with Aunt Emily's help...) in the midst of CHAOS and going to sleep!!!  I don't know how he slept through all the yelling, but he did... for a few hours!  Hannah handled this by getting on stage and "performing" for all of us.  She sang and danced her heart out.  This girl cracks me up!

The kids got one more BIG present... We took all their money from Christmas and their birthdays and bought a wood playset for the backyard!  It is currently in boxes in the garage.  I'm sure Josh will have fun setting that up in the spring!  We're excited about it!!!

I love Christmas break!  It's so fun to have so much time together as a family!  Josh had almost two weeks off (he only had to go in one day!).  We got to go shopping and out to eat a few times.  Also, Josh took Hannah to the movies one day while Jake and I shopped.  We are way off schedule and the house is trashed, but we have enjoyed every minute of it!!!

Second Cousins-Hannah & Chloe out to eat!