we had a fantastically busy christmas this year and i did a teensy-weensy bit better at taking pictures, still need to improve. we ran from house to house, family to family so it was a bit crazy, but i wouldn't have had it any other way. we did do christmas morning on our own, which was great fun. the boys slept till 8, so i showered and was totally ready for the day by the time they got up. loved it, hoping that won't ever change.
but before i dive into pictures, i want to document 2 new traditions that i'm hoping to carry on. the first is our christmas eve present. we always did jammies growing up and i know a lot of people do that, but i changed it to a book. every year, every person in our little family will get a new book on christmas eve. i love reading, my boys love to read and i want that to continue. a little selfish, you might ask? perhaps. the only person who may not stand to benefit, though, would be shawn who has only read the harry potters. i will valiantly try.
i also tried a new method of gift-buying for my boys, which i'm really excited about. my friend beth told me about an idea that i'm sure many of you have already heard of - giving each child 3 gifts. the gift of gold, frankincense, and myrrh...which translates into something they need, something they want, and something sentimental/educational. brilliant. i know i may be weird, but buying christmas for my boys has been a stressful endeavor until this year. i never have a lot of money i can spend, and i want to get the best toys for what money i have, blah, blah, blah. so this just narrows it perfectly for me. 3 gifts for each kid. done. i also feel it minimizes a little of the materialism that can creep in. then i had a small moment of "isitgoingtolooksparseunderthetree?cuzifitlookssparseunderthetree,i'macrappymom..."
but once we wrapped everything and got it all set up, it was perfect. not too much, not too little.
ps they also get a present and they're stocking filled by santa, so that helps.
santa brought the bike, the nerf gun was the gift he wanted. we scored this year, he actually plays with his presents.
after we did our own little deal, we went to my grandma's for my grandpa's famous french toast breakfast. love it. love him.
be still my beating heart. this is my very attractive hottie brother brad, and even better...he made his ugly christmas sweater. wha?!? he is so single, catch him while you can.
the boys looooove their uncles.
sweet dad, and sweet sisters.
his sweet hat from great-grandma dudley that is sadly too small and i shall be returning to gap.
this is sam and mary, she was bigger than him when she was standing.
cutie-patooties, mom and dad.
and this, friends, is another holiday tradition that i'm not totally sure if shawn enjoys or not. i love a good puzzle. it may be a bad thing, because i may or may not ignore my children for a couple of weeks while it sits on my counter, waiting to be completed.
then the pictures end. only made it through half the day and then totally checked out of picture taking mode. sad, because we had our first annual christmas concert on christmas night, at which my husband, father, and brothers wore kilts and sang and danced to their own rendition of "i saw 3 ships". it was killer.
good times.
