The Ginormous Post of All Things Pre-Christmas

Leading up to Christmas may be more fun for me than Christmas itself. Is that bad? I just love all of the fun activities and sights to see. So here is our December celebrating in a (kinda) nutshell.

Laura & I determined that this is now an annual activity since this is our 3rd year in a row to get together for a Christmas craft. So hard to believe Jackson & Tate are this big now. And I love that Anna joined in the crafting. The felt Santa ornaments and gingerbread cookie pops were a hit!

Sweet baby brother had to watch from the sideline as I'm pretty sure he would've been eating the glue.

Our trip to see Santa was pretty perfect. In the past, we've gone to the local mall. They have a great Santa, but the lines and the cost always made me wonder if it was even worth it. So when the place where both boys have done physical therapy said they have a free Santa AND you can schedule a time slot. Ummm, yes, please.

He was a super sweet Santa, and both of the boys did good. Tate hopped right onto his lap, and Will stared at him like he was the strangest looking thing ever. Tate told Santa he wanted a Leapster, (check!), a Batmobile (check!), and a robot (huh????). This was the first I'd heard of a robot. But Santa came through on 2 of the 3. Pretty good odds. And we got a chance for a photo with the boys and our favorite physical therapist, Ms. Carolyn. A BIG thank you to OCH for the sweetest, easiest Santa experience ever!

Next up was the preschool Christmas party. Fun, fun, fun. And it gives me even more appreciation for the hard work of his teachers. :) Everyone got to decorate a gingerbread cookie. And clearly, Tate listens to Ms. C well because after she told them not to squeeze the icing too hard, he would barely squeeze any of it out. The M&Ms wouldn't stay on. That was fine with him, of course, because he just promptly ate them all off. :) And the book exchange game is always fun as well.At home, I put up most of the decorations after the boys were asleep. But I did let Tate decorate the tree in the playroom. I put up the garland and a few ornaments up high, but he put all of the other ornaments on the tree and had fun doing it. I was pretty proud of myself for leaving them where he put them ALL in the front lower half.
For our 2nd year in a row, we had a family night of Christmas PJs, treats, Christmas music, and driving around looking at lights. We got some matchy, matchy brother pictures before (wonder how many years I'll get away with that) and then loaded up the car. One fun memory is that we happened to be driving by Tate's friend Annie's house. So we let him run up to the door (in PJs) to wish her a Merry Christmas. He's usually not nervous about many things, but this gave him some cold feet. He ran from the car to the door and back to the car probably four different times before he got up enough nerve to ring the doorbell. It was pretty funny to watch. Bummer that Annie was already asleep! We'll have to try again next year.

Next was our day at the Gaylord. We went on a weekday morning, and it was still packed. Didn't get many pictures of the decorations, but it's always beautifully decorated.

We decided to do their version of a snow hill. Not sure if I'd call it snow, but it worked. Funny thing was that when getting the tickets Wade just assumed it would be he and Tate going down the hill. Hey mister, I like to live on the edge, too, you know.

So I did the first two runs with Tate, and Wade did the second two. It was really dark and weird lighting in there, so the pictures aren't good at all. But in the first picture you can see Tate just plopping right down on tube with no hesitation. I'm standing there wondering if this is a good idea or not. Clearly, he did not inherit by cautious nature. And boy did that thing go fast for such a little "snow" hill. Lots of fun for all 3 of us. (Sorry Will, it may be a couple more years.)

You think he enjoyed himself just a little?
And with all of the pretty decorations, I tried my best to get some good pictures of the boys.
They are pretty cute if I do say so myself.

But don't let these adorable, happy faces fool you. There was plenty of this along the way as well.
And what a fun surprise as we were leaving to walk right by one of Wade's longtime friends and groomsmen in our wedding, Chad, along with his family. Fun to catch up for a few minutes!
The obligatory photo in the sleigh.
The wonder of the trains.

The Gaylord was just what we needed a few days before all of the fun began with our 3 different Christmas celebrations. More fa la la la la-ing to come.