I’m on a blogging roll! Even though we had that bit of extra time between Thanksgiving and Christmas, it still felt like it went so quick. I’m guessing it’s just going to keep on like this since we have so much going on with the kids. I just love the memories being made and the smiles on everyone’s faces, and being able to document it all on this blog makes it that much sweeter. I will love having this to look back on!
So let’s begin with Christmas Eve shall we?
Mia can usually be found wearing very basic clothing-usually a comfy onesie and leggings that are forgiving of her cute little baby gut. For our family Christmas celebration we decided to dress her up. I actually found a Christmas-y dress with DOGS on it (yes, dogs, her favorite!), and then I did manage to squeeze her into the equivalent of baby Spanx. The adorable bunny slippers were mismatched with the outfit, but provided her with the necessary traction for walking all over the house the whole evening!
Ty helped me with the dinner place setting cards…
And here we have BethEliza’s seat…
Once everyone started arriving it was clear our entire foyer would be overcome with gifts…
And since a plethora of shiny wrapped gifts just begs for the children’s attention and curiosity, we had many requests to open “just one!". We allowed…
Ty received a SUPER comfy Batman fleece blanket from Vicky and Danny (thanks Vicky, what a thoughtful gift!).
And as many of you know, our superhero, princess daughter Marlo has a penchant for going about her daily routines dressed as various fictional characters. The condition of most of these outfits is downright sad. We’re talking ripped seams, grass/mud stains, runs and tears, and just overall wear and tear. So within a matter of minutes, our little Supergirl became Cinderella!
(eek, cringe, look at that Supergirl skirt…)
GG brought some much sought after delicacies for dessert!
I’m still giddy about this picture! I cannot believe we managed to wrangle in our entire little family for a photo!
The fleece blankets were quite the hit! Vicky, you did well!
We had an early dinner so we could spend the rest of the evening with gifts and each other…
Back to our regularly scheduled program…GIFTS!!!
It seems every year there is one gift (usually one of the first ones given) that consumes the children’s attention.
This year it was the Batcave from GG and Grandpa! Ty and Gunnar spent much time tucked away on the edge of the sea of wrapping paper.
Scout and Mia retreated to the playroom for some wide open space to play around.
Mia read books and Scout read books. In the fridge. Yeah, you read that correctly. Pictorial proof below.
Marlo made sure everyone stayed on task with the gift opening. My favorite line from her the whole night was during the passing out of gifts. She kept coming up to me with a gift in hand and saying, “Who’s this guy for?” She was referring to the gifts as “guys”. There is none like her, I tell ya! We love her way too much!
Gunnar playing with a car set that was even smaller than Micro Machines I think!
The whole gang!
An actual real item of clothing!
Scout took time out from chillin’ in the fridge and did a little freestyle dance with a flashlight…
Another pinnacle of the gift giving-Tommy receiving a Shake Weight!!!
(Pop Quiz: Which Regan brother is working out harder in this photo?)
Pass the Shake Weight!
(Any readers have a straight face through this series of photos??)
Shake the Weight, don’t shake the baby! (Apparently Zeke got a little shaken up, as evidenced by his dribbled upon shirt and Brian’s consternation!)
Can’t go wrong with a Graeter’s cake now can ya?
Buddha got a hold of Uncle D’s phone and took off! I’ll let you guess if she was amused by that!
Christmas Eve was quite a late night and the kids were finally all snug in their beds (with visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads, if they even know what those are!) about 10PM. Santa’s helpers got to work.
Ty remembered to set out his letter he wrote to Santa along with the cookies and milk. (The letter reads: “Dear Santa, I like your red suit. Why do people call you Saint Nick.”)
Christmas Morning, and the tree in all its glory!
(That’s Mia’s one big gift splayed out there in front of the tree!)
Marlo was half asleep, but opened her gifts excitedly.
**Precious moment alert** At Ty’s school they did a Santa’s Workshop, which allowed the kids to have a certain amount of money to shop for their family all on their own. I volunteered that Saturday morning at the workshop and Ty came with me. He went off on his own with a sixth grade “Elf” helper and did his own shopping. He talked about his gift choices (which he kept secret till Christmas morning!) just about every day and kept them tucked under his bed for safekeeping. Here he is Christmas morning presenting a gift to Marlo that he bought (actually this was not one of the gifts from the workshop, but his enthusiasm carried over into each gift that we opened from him).
He was explaining that it was a dancing Cinderella and Prince Charming that actually twirled!
Mia’s BIG present, which as I predicted, became an instant hit with all of them…
Plenty of dress ups here…
Just a little excited about DS Megamind Game
Something he asked Santa for, a Human Anatomy Puzzle/Model
Something Marlo asked Santa for, and her subsequent happiness!
Love that face (and double chin, my absolute favorite!)…
And now that it’s all winding down, we are spending some time taking it somewhat easy while Tommy is “off” work. We’ve been roller skating, shopping at Ikea, and just spending plenty of time playing around the house.
Tonight we wait for the Snopocolypse! Bring it on!
