Christmas Day

 If I had any doubt that our children are growing up, Christmas Day confirmed it again. Since Christmas was on Sunday, we decided to go to church and wait to open presents until after church. The oldest three were excited to see friends on Christmas and Isaiah thought it was super exciting to be able to wear his jammies to church. It was a shorter service, but, as per usual, our family was just about the last to leave.

As soon as we got home, I got brunch/lunch started and the children opened their gifts from Matt and Chrissy. It was really fun for them to open a gift to hold them over until after lunch.

This year Isaiah picked out gifts for his brother and sisters. He wanted to be the first to GIVE his gifts and Isaiah could hardly contain his excitement. He stood right beside Josiah--with his arm around his shoulder.

There were lots of hugs.

Jeremy likes to make milkshakes and Aliza gave him a "milkshake cup" and his favorite candy additions for his milkshakes.

Josiah hugged Aliza and Anna after opening their gifts--which just needed to be documented.

This gift for Anna was a bit silly. She is ALWAYS stealing my water cup. So I gave her 2 glass water cups with metal straws and wooden lids. She has been faithfully using her own this week!

We've been joking that Anna is creating an instrument collection. This year she really wanted a ukelele. She found an app that she has been using a lot this week. She's been really excited about what she's learning and her progress.

We surprised Aliza...

...twice. The second one was triple wrapped and put in a bigger box. A really great Black Friday sale made her gift possible!

I always forget how overwhelming the post Christmas mess is. I got the worst of it cleaned up and by then I had hit the "Christmas wall" and my "Christmas spirit" was gone. A nap helped a bit. I got up in time to clean up the kitchen, bake dinner rolls, and head to Mom and Dad's house for Christmas dinner. 

After dinner we watching Sight and Sound's production "Jesus" on TV. I had not seen on of their productions on TV. It was really good. The boys said it was good, but Aliza and Anna truly loved it. Now they want nothing more than to watch a Sight and Sound play live. 

Now, a few days later, I've forgotten how bad the mess was and am cherishing the memories of our family together at this stage in the children's lives.
 

Christmas Eve

 My family gathered on Christmas Eve to celebrate Christmas. Christmas is much more relaxed with older children! The children were talking and playing and eventually they decided it was time to open presents. Christmas is much more relaxed with older children!

Lydia had a present for each of her cousins. She was so excited to give her gifts--it was the sweetest. The boys got key chains that said, "when you forget that you are awesome, this is your reminder" and the girls got key chains that said, "Not sisters by blood, but sisters by heart."

Grandma and Grandad with the grandchildren.

Isaiah was the last grandchild to open his gift from Grandma and Grandad (they opened oldest to youngest this time) and he was the one who stopped to read his card out loud.

Mom finished the cross stitch quilt blocks that Linda started in high school. She added butterfly buttons. Linda was surprised! She didn't even know that the quilt blocks were still at Mom's house.

Mom was pretty surprised by a book by her current favorite author, Charles Martin. (I was equally surprised when I was in Barnes and Noble and saw the book on the shelf and was pretty sure it was one she hadn't read.)

I gave Dad this piece that one of his cousins made. It was a cousin on his Dad's side of the family and this was the first Christmas that Dad had Christmas without his Dad.

Grandma and Grandad got to do a video call with Sean. Sean said he will give them "the biggest Christmas hug ever" when he sees them. So sweet.

We had the traditional pizza, shrimp, crab dip and cookies for supper.
Christmas Eve wasn't quite over when we got home. Isaiah reached his goal of saving for a Nintendo Switch between his Christmas gift from Grandma and Grandad and the $5 Janell handed to him. That night he bought the Switch from his Mom and Dad. 

Isaiah and I had agreed that Jeremy and I would buy it so that when he had the money, he could get have the Switch right away--not have to wait for stores to be open.

Isaiah was pretty proud that he had saved that much money over the last almost 2 years. His Dad helped him get it all set up and then, of course, he had to play the Pokemon game that Uncle Joel gave him for his birthday in October. (Don't worry...Isaiah asked for that game in October in preparation for getting the Switch.)

All 4 of the the kids have successfully saved for a switch. The girls have the Lite and the boys have the full size. 

I don't remember if it actually was, but it seemed like it was very late when we made it to bed!
 

More Christmas Things

 We have all LOVED our first week of Christmas vacation. Josiah is already lamenting how difficult it is going to be to start school again. I tell him to enjoy the moment he has right now!

I didn't get a picture of him, but it was Josiah that said we HAD to decorate gingerbread men at Grandma's house.

Anna set up her happy place after everyone else was finished decorating cookies. She tried all the techniques she saw on the Christmas Cookie Challenge show.

There was a party for the children and youth at church. Aliza invited a friend and she was so excited that her friend came and had a good time. There was cookie decorating and other crafts. Isaiah was so excited to get to hang out with the youth group for an evening.

The church we go to has a lot of teenagers and only a few children Isaiah's age. So he considers the teenagers and young adults his friends.

Thursday was cookie baking day at home! Snickerdoodles, gingersnaps, Reese cup cookies and Christmas cut out cookies were on the agenda.

This time Isaiah ate every cookie he decorated.

Yesterday was a friend day. Aliza made Alena a calendar with pictures from the year. It was cute to watch them look at it together.

I've been enjoying my Christmas cups of tea.

Christmas roses.

A Mario Cart tournament is currently happening.

For the first time, Isaiah bought presents for his siblings. He pretty much had everything decided before we got to the store. Helping him wrap his presents was a moment I wanted to freeze in my memory.
 

Christmas Things

 A few Christmas things from the first half of December.

My mom passed on her Christmas tree to us. We decorated it at her house last year when our house was far too torn apart for Christmas decorations. So it was extra fun to decorate it at our house this year. Mom had taught Josiah how to put it together which he did and then I was a bit shocked when he just reached up and put the topper on. He had to stretch a bit...but still...

I'm also enjoying doing advent readings from Ruth Chou Simons book called Emmanuel: An Invitation to Prepare Him Room at Christmas and Always. Each day is a gift of words and art.

Maria and I had our annual Christmas tea. This is a Victorian tea room. It was decorated to the max and left us a feeling a bit overwhelmed with the eclectic assortments of decor on ever surface. It was fun to look around though and the tea and food is always very good. 

Friends from church invited us over for pizza, a game of Jeopardy made especially for us with categories of Christmas movies, Mystical Creatures, Video Games, Star Wars, and Spartacus (ask us about it! lol), and a tour of their epic display of outdoor Christmas lights. Anna declared the unicorn display "hers".

The toy train display in Snow Hill was fun to check out. Isaiah would have taken the Cheerios train car home with him if he could have. (That boy and his Cheerios!) There were SO many trains. It was a neat display. Cookies, snacks and Duck Dynasty at Grandma and Grandad's house afterwards made the evening extra fun.

 

One More Celebration

 Last week Anna had her (postponed-because-of-sickness) birthday party. These girls had so much fun together.

Anna and I decided on chocolate fondue for dessert.

There was lots of talking and giggling while they ate. At least one of the girls had never had fondue before.

Anna is now fully celebrated! 

I was excited to find a super simple crockpot fondue recipe. It was just semi sweet chocolate chips and nutella melted together. 

After the girls were finished Aliza, Josiah, Isaiah and two of their friends had their turn eating fondue!
 

Joy Dare::November

At the beginning of the month I loosely followed the prompts that started this so many years ago.

9615. Church bells in the morning
9616. S'more mix
9617. Chai tea latte
9618. Lunch salad
9619. Cardigans
9620. Tennis shoes for walking
9621. Hoodies and comfy pants
9622. New-to-Isaiah bike

9623. News source--SmartHer News
9624. Nap
9625. November afternoon in short sleeves
9626. Gathered: big piles of leaves

9627. Given: Psalm  94:19
9628. Good: moonlight, stars and a fire
9629. Heart shaped leaves
9630. Berries on the tree after the leaves have fallen
9631. A perfect afternoon for family and Pokemon
9632. Setting up for a baby shower
9633. Aliza willing to help with everything
9634. Isaiah's sweet words for his yet-to-be-born cousin
9635. The last of the fall colors
9636. Another warm, sunny day
9637. Glow in the dark frisbee
9638. Moonlight
9639. Afternoon tea
9640. Pumpkin muffin and the Great British Baking Show
9641. Isaiah "learning" something new

9642. An evening at home I wasn't expecting
9643. Morning sun
9644. Nahum 1:7 "The Lord is good."
9645. Job 37:5
9646. Copying Scripture
9647. Talking to my brother
9648. Isaiah said multiple times during the day that he was so happy
9649. Dan & Laurie at our house
9650. A table full of family and conversation
9651. Cousins playing outside long past dark
9652. More than enough food behind the refrigerator doors
9653. Choir singing
9654. Thanksgiving dinner at church
9655. All the Marco Polo video messages
9656. Praying
9657. Isaiah needed aunt attention and Janell was here to give it
9658. Candle burning on a rainy day
9659. Promoted to once a year endocrinology appointments
9660. All of us at home for an evening
9661. Watching these children of mine grow up
9662. Shopping with the boys (lol)
9663. A Christmas Bible study series
9664. Finishing ESL for the semester
9665. Surprising Aliza was the best
9666. Talking so much I had to bring home half of my drink
9667. School finished for a week off for Thanksgiving
9668. Josiah had a busy day--and enjoyed it
9669. Aliza took the time to play with Isaiah
9670. Aliza's choir singing with the Maryland Boy Choir
9671. Sleeping in and pajama morning
9672. Tradition--baptism Sunday
9673. Tradition--Sunday afternoon nap
9674. Tradition--Sunday supper: whatever you can find
9675. Vacation day
9676. A very brisk afternoon walk
9677. Anna felt mostly good enough to enjoy her day
9678. Sweet Frog

 9679. Mom and Dad with us for supper
9680. Thanksgiving baking day
9681. Our favorite supper and family evening
9682. Anna started feeling better
9683. We made it to Thanksgiving dinner (barely)
9684. Isaiah had the best time playing with Ezra
9685. Movie watching evening
9686. Got to see Linda
9687. We made it to WV without incident
9688. A reading evening for me
9689. Taking care of all my kiddos
9690. Some time with Karen
9691. Anna's shopping trip
9692. Playing outside with Isaiah
9693. Everyone seems to be feeling better
9694. Children who thank me for bringing them to WV and telling me all the reasons why they are thankful
9695. The first taste of Christmas--Peppermint Chip milkshake
9696. Janell took Anna to dance
9697. Everyone asleep early
9698. Taking school slow
9699. Josiah's commentary during Holiday Baking Championship
9700. Kindle book for when I can't fall asleep
9701. Hearing Aliza singing in the afternoon
9702. Being a friend
9703. The process of learning to love people well