When we last left off, this is what things looked like around here. For whatever reason, after the girls went to bed on Christmas Eve I started to panic about what my photos would look like. I hate using the flash, I was worried about things being blurry without it, my video camera would be on the tripod so that was out. I think I just like to worry in general. I decided I should shoot Christmas morning in manual mode. For the first time. I sat down with my camera manual and figured it out. Sort of. Granted, many of these have a smidge of blur and they are far from perfect — they are MUCH brighter and prettier than any of our previous Christmas celebrations. So, I’m trying to have no regrets and just go with it. Now onto the big day!
I woke up at 5:30. I made coffee, pigs in a blanket and sausage balls. I took some pictures of the loot and checked my camera one more time. I put new batteries in the video camera, I fixed Beemer a treat so she wouldn’t bother us all morning and then I waited. Finally, at 7 o’clock I was done waiting. I woke up Josh first and then the girls. We brushed hair and added bows (last year’s bed head was disastrous!) and started videoing. Christmas. WAS. ON.
The first thing Sophie did was sit down on her four-wheeler and push the button. She knew just what to do and waited for no one. Including mommy’s camera. I’m sad there isn’t a better shot, but this is what it looked like. A blurry Sophie whirring around the room on her pretty pink quad. She doesn’t know how to steer, so she rides until she runs into something and then shouts UH-OH at the top of her lungs. It’s pretty awesome.
In true Ella fashion, after she surveyed the unwrapped goods, she headed straight for her stocking. There were pretty pink earbuds, sparkly flats, Miss Mismatch socks, a movie, stickers and tons of Reese’s peanut butter cups. Santa certainly knows the way to this girl’s heart!
Sophie couldn’t believe she had finally been given the green light to open gifts. She squealed and smiled and gasped with every shred of the paper. She didn’t care what was inside — clothes, toys, sippy cups — it was all exciting and she tried out every single thing.
It’s beginning to look like Christmas to me! Notice, neither child sat in their chair. Oh well — if nothing else, it looked super cute!
I can’t believe that I didn’t get Ella to turn her jewelry box around or get a picture of the treasure around her neck. The only thing she requested from our trip to NYC was an apple necklace (the Big Apple, you know), but we couldn’t find one anywhere! Thanks to our friend etsy and expressed shipping, we managed to snag this one a mere days before Christmas. To say that she was thrilled is a huge understatement. It’s barely left her sight since the moment it was unboxed.
Sophie finally spotted her stocking and found a zig zag sock monkey, a new sippy cup, plastic animals and a stash of M&Ms. Yummy!
Ella loves these Scribbles & Nibbles disposable placemats — they are similar to those you find at restaurants that she loves to color with her daddy. She also got some pretty cute Barbie clothes from her little sister.
Sophie quickly blew through her Dora stickers. She insisted on putting every single one “one her belly!”. We still have a lot to learn about stickers.
And for the sake of remembering, here is what the girls got for Christmas.
{Sophie} from Santa: hot pink quad, baby umbrella stroller, iPhone apptivity case and a full stocking; from Ella: a new coloring book from the Santa shop at school; from Mom & Dad: a new Corolle doll from FAO Schwarz in NYC, Little People surfer truck and several new outfits.
{Ella} from Santa: Mobigo, two games and carrying case, the entire Junie B. Jones book set, the Little House on the Prairie books and a full stocking; from Sophie: Barbie clothes; from Mom & Dad: apple necklace, two 100 piece puzzles from FAO Schwartz, the pad of disposable placemats, a new jacket for school, a headband and several new outfits.
We were almost done opening gifts when Ella thought to check the cookie plate. At first she was a little disappointed when she thought Santa hadn’t read or taken her letter. She grabbed it up only to find that Santa left her a little note in it’s place. How sweet!
Santa thought he was SO smart bringing Sophie this little gadget! It lets her play with mommy’s iPhone without access to the home key. I can start an application, or importantly her her “see Sophie Kae” and she can’t mess anything up. Word to the wise… it’s a pain in the rump to open and close and if the screen locks, you have to take it out to unlock it since you’ve blocked access to the home key. Parenting/Santa FAIL.
Next up was some breakfast time, testing out new art supplies by Ella and some more mess making by Sophie Kae. I just took pictures of it all and enjoying see my littles so happy.
I can’t help but share this funny, even though the picture reveals how ridiculous I am sometimes. Last year our girls slept late and we had family walk in the front door just as we are videotaping the girls’ entrance into the room. The video is hilarious because you can barely see their reaction for the door swinging open. The left and came back later and we got plenty of good video, but just in case, we left a note for our friends and family this year. And lucky for us, it was in the trash before any visitors came by!
After plenty of time to enjoy our toys, we got all dressed up and headed out to church on Christmas morning. I couldn’t think of anywhere I would rather be to celebrate the birth of our Savior and surprised myself by thinking just how wonderful it was for Christmas to fall on a Sunday. It was wonderful to celebrate in His house. There was a huge crowd and the service was so special. Our minister of music played this video and I couldn’t help but tear up – AMAZING!
We rounded out the day with my crazy family. There were about 30 of us, eating the best food, playing cards, sitting around the fire and napping. It was wonderful. I don’t think we got home until after 10 o’clock that night and if I hadn’t been so tired we would have stayed even later. I won a rousing game of Shanghai and managed to plow through multiple plates of yummy food while I was at it.
Ella managed to find her way back to pajamas and even learned how to play Speed. She was so excited to know a big girl game of cards and actually did quite well. Sophie was just thrilled to be sporting her cowgirl boots again and opening more gifts. She got some Little People, a Mrs. Potato Head and some Christmas books.
This was such a wonderful Christmas and I cannot imagine it getting much better. I know that every year brings more and more to celebrate as our children grow and learn more about the true reason for the season. The anticipation builds and there is even more to be excited about. For now, it is family and magic and singing Happy Birthday, Jesus. It’s identifying the characters in the nativity scene and waiting for Santa to make his delivery. It is enjoying my girls while they are young, getting excited with them and doing everything in my power to preserve the magic just a little bit longer.
Merry Christmas from our house to yours. I hope it was just as blessed and wonderful as ours was!
