Images of Christmas

It's hard to believe that Christmas has come and gone, but while the memories are still fresh in my mind, here are some of the images I will always remember from Christmas Season 2011.

Our kids were so excited for the return of Winston, our Christmas elf.  He arrives every year on December 1st, and the night before, the kids could barely sleep as they anticipated his arrival.  We were so excited to have him back in our house and loved his daily updates about his family, life in the North Pole, and his Christmas countdown progress reports.  He is such a jolly elf, with twinkly eyes and a cheery smile, we were all sad when it was time for him to go home.

The kids sat on Santa's lap at the ward party.  Abby told Santa that she wanted an American Girl doll and Lucy told him that she wanted a baby doll.  I took nostalgic joy in knowing that my two girls both wanted dolls for Christmas.  Who knows when they'll ever have similar Christmas lists again. 

Peter had a Christmas program at preschool.  For weeks he had walked around the house singing the songs he was learning for his program.  The night before his program, he made us all sit down and listen to him sing (and do actions) just so he'd be ready.  His program was darling - and Peter smiled and sang through the whole thing.  He even got to play a chime during one of the songs and did a great job.  (My favorite thing was the way he kept time with his foot.)  I love the enthusiasm of four-year old boys and I sure love my Peter.

Abby was invited to a tea party with several girls from her grade.  The invitation encouraged the girls to wear hats if possible.  Luckily we had this darling hat that had at one time belonged to my grandma Lulu.  I loved the way it looked on Abby.  With the hat and the fur cap and muff, she looked like a perfectly elegant girl from a hundred years ago.  What a fun event it was.

Henry lost both his teeth this December which made for hours of fun singing "All I Want For Christmas" at our house.  He lost his first tooth at the beginning of December and we were all hoping he would lose his other tooth before Christmas.  Luckily, the week before the big day, we were at dinner with some friends, when their 12-year old son pulled Henry's tooth out for him.  It was a great moment - one Henry will always remember.  He looks so cute with that big gap in his smile, but man, it makes him look older - and that's not really the look I'm going for with my cute boy.

On December 1st, our power went out around noon and was out for the next several hours.  By dinner time, the house was dark and cold and we didn't know when the power would be on again.  So, we embraced our pioneer roots, and built a fire in the front room fireplace.  We snuggled together by the fire while the kids did homework and read books.  It was cozy and warm and even felt a little adventurous, but man oh man, were we ever happy when the lights came back on.  We all agreed that having electricity is NOT overrated.

Some of the best Christmas moments occurred when there was no camera available (or wanted.)

I loved sitting by the Christmas tree reading stories to my kids every night.  Amazingly, they are all still interested in listening to me read as they snuggle close to see the pictures and hang on every word.  These are magical times.

I'll never forget curling up together as a family and watching "It's A Wonderful Life."   Ever since I first saw it, years and years ago, this has been one of my all time favorite movies.  I was shocked when I learned that Andrew had never seen it, and several times over the past fourteen years, I have suggested we watch it.  Anyway, this year was the first time we finally got around to watching it as a family.  When it was over, after we all wiped away our tears, we all agreed it was one of the best movies we'd ever seen.  Ever since that night, Andrew has been on a mission encouraging others to watch this movie.  Somehow, he is repeatedly surprised when most people tell him that they have already seen it.  

I loved mornings in December when the kids would jump out of bed to find Winston and read his latest note.  I loved that every morning, someone would plug in the Christmas tree lights and the dark, cold mornings of December would feel brighter.  I loved watching the kids figure out whose turn it was to hang the next ornament on the advent calendar.  And I loved how in so many ways, we counted down the days until Christmas.  

It's such a magical month at our house, and while Christmas morning is the pinnacle, I love the whole season and the small moments each day that make it happiest time of the year.

Scenes of Christmas

How is it possible that Christmas is just a week away?  This month has gone by entirely too fast for my liking.  It has been an amazing month.  We have had so much fun but there has also been a spirit of peace in our home.  (Well, except for when the kids have been fighting or having meltdowns.  But who doesn't have a meltdown at least once during December?)

Here are some scenes from our Christmas season so far...

We have loved reading books by the Christmas tree every night.

We went to the Nativity at Bonneville Glen - always a highlight.

Lucy's first experience with Santa was less than comfortable. 

 Lights at Temple Square

Our Christmas Angel taking in all the sights.

 

Minnie's favorite place to take a nap is under our Christmas tree.

Occasionally, she entertains guests under there.

Some of our favorite ornaments:

We have pictures of each of our kids from every year.  They are starting to take up lots of space on our tree, but it's a tradition I can't quit.  This one is Isaac - Christmas 2003.  Love that jolly boy!

An "ornament" I bought when I went to Taiwan in December 1999.

(I have no idea what it's used for in Taiwan.)

A painted egg I bought in Prague on Study Abroad in college.

(I have four of them, and I have moved them all over the country and not one has been broken.)

An ornament given to me by Senator Bennett when I worked for him.

It reminds us of the years we spent living in Virginia - such a great time in our lives.

Peter had a singing performance at preschool.

Peter spots Andrew during his performance.

Afterward, he insisted I take a picture of his "outfit."

And finally, the prettiest sight we see...

is the star on top of "Andrew's" tree.

He added the star this year to the top of our 50-foot tree. 

This truly is the best time of year and our kids are such perfect ages, I hate how quickly it all goes by.  Wouldn't it be nice if December lasted sixty days and we could just skip January?  

Who's in?

Christmas Day in the Morning...

Last night when it came time to open our Christmas book, it was Isaac's turn to pick.  He gingerly looked through the stack of books that hadn't yet been opened, until he found the one he was looking for.  He picked it up and unwrapped it - and the room was filled with knowing murmurs:  "It's the one that makes Mom cry," they all said.

I looked and sure enough, it was "Christmas Day in the Morning" - the one Christmas book I have never been able to read without crying.  "Maybe this year I won't cry," I said hopefully, but we all knew what was to come.

We sat down next to the Christmas tree to read.  The kids seemed to snuggle a little closer on this night, as if trying to protect me from the wave of emotion that was ready to crash at any second.  And then, somewhere in the last three or four pages, it hit.  It started out with my voice starting to quiver - just a little.  The kids all looked at me nervously - yet hopefully.  "I'm fine." I assured them.

But a few paragraphs later, a tear leaked out of one eye.  Henry looked up at me and gently brushed it away.  Isaac put his arm around my shoulder and Abby patted my knee.

I pressed on, but it was a lost cause.  I finished the book with tears running down my face - yet trying to maintain the slightest bit of composure.  I can't help it.  This book does it to me every time!  When we were done, the kids dog-piled me with hugs and kisses and understanding giggles and I soaked it all in.

After everyone had calmed down and they were tucked in bed, I thought about "Christmas Day in the Morning" and about my kids' reaction to it and to my emotions.  I realized that although my kids aren't really comfortable seeing me cry, the fact that I cry every time I read this book to them, is as much a tradition as the reading itself.  And they love that book - and me - for it.

A New Member of the Family

We live in a pretty great neighborhood.   That much we've known since we rented a house in this neighborhood when we first moved back to Utah.  In fact, we loved this area so much we bought a house so we could stay here and raise our kids here - even though the house is way too small and was way overpriced.  (A different post for another time.)

In any case, although we've always known this neighborhood is something special, it has recently come to our attention, that it is special for a different reason.   Since moving here, we have learned that Santa sends special Christmas elves to many of the homes in our neighborhood.  In fact, Abby recently reported to me that we are the only ones who don't get a Christmas elf.  Well being Abby, she took matters into her own hands and wrote a letter to Santa:

Well, imagine our family's delight when we woke up this morning and found that Santa had sent our family a Christmas elf too!  He brought with him a note, by way of introduction, and included the rules for having one of Santa's elves in your house.

Basically, he is here to observe what goes on in our house between now and Christmas and will report back to Santa.  He moves around the house at night when everyone is asleep - so everyday we need to look for him in a different spot.  He can't talk to us, but if we have questions about him or Santa or about the North Pole, we can leave notes for him and he will write back to us.  The most important rule, is that no one is allowed to touch the elf.  If anyone touches him, the elf magic will be broken and he'll never be able to return to the North Pole.  All his elf magic will be gone.

The kids were beyond ecstatic (yelling, shouting, jumping up and down, and generally freaking out) when they spotted him - perched high on shelf, sitting next to our alphabet blocks which had  a special message:

We are all so excited about welcoming this elf to our family and look forward to learning more about him over the next  24 days. Hopefully, he'll have great things to report back to Santa as he observes our family this month. (Fingers crossed.)

So, while we are always grateful for our great friends and neighbors, today we are grateful to them for letting us in on the secret of the elf.

Ready to Read...

Andrew and I were up well past midnight last night wrapping books for our annual "Christmas Book Countdown." Today, they are all under the tree ready to be  inspected, picked through and unwrapped.

I am keenly and painfully aware that there are only a few years left in which our house is completely filled with magic this time of year, and I am trying my hardest to make the most of every moment.

So today, Andrew and I are sleepy but lighthearted as we look forward to the rest of this month.

Happy Reading and Happy December to you all!

Christmas Book Countdown

A few years ago, I came across a blog or a website somewhere that gave me the idea for what has become one of our family's favorite Christmas traditions.

Every year, I wrap up all of our Chirstmas books (about 25 of them) and put them under the tree. Then each night, starting on December 1st, one of the kids gets to choose a book and unwrap it and we read it together curled up under the Christmas tree. For me, there is nothing more fun than having my four kids in their pajamas, faces glowing with excitement as they anticipate which book will be chosen tonight.

They each have their favorite they hope to choose. Isaac loves "Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree", Abby loves "Christmas Day in the Morning" and Henry loves "The Night Before Christmas" illustrated by Mary Englebreit. They have become quite adept at feeling the spine of the book and measuring the size and weight, hoping they will choose the one they want. But, even when it turns out to be a book other than than the one they were hoping for, we all snuggle together (okay, usually Peter is running circles around us) and read a wonderful Christmas story together.

It's the perfect way to end the day and the perfect way to enjoy the Christmas spirit all month long.



So, what are your (or your kids') favorite Christmas books?