Christmas Time is Here!

Tanner was on call from the 21st through the 25th. He had to go into the hospital quite a bit but the kids were so understanding and helpful to me. 

At the beginning of the month we put out our manger and straw. Every time the kids did a secret service they could put a straw in the manger to prepare the bed for baby Jesus. They weren't always the best at keeping it "secret". "Hey mom, you should go check your bed..." but I loved to see the joy that the service brought them. One morning while I was in the shower, they all hustled around and tried to clean the whole house, even vacuuming. They really are sweet kids and I love seeing their desire to do whats right. 

Sunday morning Tanner was in the hospital so I got the kids ready on my own and it went surprisingly well. Must have been the Christmas Spirit we were all feeling.  

 I really love the Sunday before Christmas. There is such a special spirit and it is so special to be together with a congregation, in worship of our Lord and Savior. This year we did something new: we sang Silent Night as a family in church while Tanner played the guitar. It definitely wasn't perfect, Eliza was all over the place, but we believed what we sang and I think that helped. I also was so glad Tanner was able to make it to church...it wouldn't have gone so well without his talents. 

 Eliza watched everyone else take their pictures so when it was her turn she walked right over to the tree and put on a big grin. I couldn't have planned it better if I tried. 

 Love these silly kiddos. 

 After church Mariah and Chet took turns taking pictures of Tanner and I; they did a pretty good job. 

 On Christmas Eve Eve the kids and I had a slumber party around the tree. Eliza and I didn't sleep there but I read them Christmas stories and stayed in the room until they fell asleep. 

 On Christmas Eve we had the Hilton family and the Elders over. Mariah, Chet, and Austin went in the yard and cut some pine boughs and collected some mini pinecones. They also found some feathers that had to be included in the table centerpiece. Chet and Austin were very proud of their handiwork. 

 We watched It's a Wonderful Life (the Elders received special permission to watch the movie and were very excited about it). We played a fun pass the present game while Baydon read The Night Before Christmas. Every time he said "and" everyone passed their gift to the right and whenever he read "the" we all passed them to the left. There was one big gift. Chet ended up being the last one with the big gift so he got the fluffy red blanket. The other kids were ok with it because the other gifts were things like mac and cheese (for kids with health conscious parents, this is a big deal), candy bars, nutter butters, and fun pens. 

After the Elders left we started The Muppets Christmas Carol, so that Tanner and I could sneak away to get one more present. I've been wanting a puppy for a while now and Tanner finally gave up and let me get my way. We found an adorable Aussiedoodle. He smelled so bad when we got him that we had to drive home with the windows rolled down. We kept him in the garage until the kids went to bed and then I snuck him in for a bath. 

The night before I had lectured all the kids on what time they could come and wake us up. I told them no earlier than 6. So right at 6:00 am, Mariah was in our room telling us it was time. Tanner went into the Christmas tree with the kids while I got the puppy. I put a collar with bells on him and let him walk out to the kids. They were pretty excited and Tanner warmed up to him really quick. 

 We decided to name him Guster, Gus for short. He's a big puppy for 9 weeks and he has the sweetest curled tail and loves to lay out as flat as possible with his legs splayed out behind him.  

 Eliza got the ball this year (there always has to be a ball given to someone each Christmas). And every stocking had the traditional Ramen noodles which the kids happily ate for lunch that day. Mariah had been saying that she wanted a snow globe and Chet decided that was what he wanted to get her for Christmas. We were able to find one on Facebook for $3 so Chet bought it with his own money. Mariah got Chet a slingshot which he loves and has already made us nervous. Austin got a truck and trailer with a tractor; he has loved driving it around and scooping up puff balls. 

 Mariah had these notes under the tree for Tanner and I. 

After presents were opened Tanner had to go into the hospital for the morning but the kids stayed busy playing with toys and I stayed busy trying to keep Gus from peeing on the carpet...it's a full time job. 

Later that afternoon we went over to some friends to decorate and eat cookies. Gus got to have his first playdate with another dog and he had fun pouncing on her and wore himself completely out. 

Although it wasn't our ideal Christmas with Tanner having to be gone for part of the day we still had a wonderful day. How grateful we are for the birth of Jesus Christ and the peace that brings us. It is such a joy to see our children learn what the real meaning of Christmas is. 

Leading up to Christmas

We had a busy December full of adventures and Christmas Spirit; with a few meltdowns here and there to keep things real. 

 We started out the festivities by going and getting a Christmas tree. I have always wanted to go to an actual farm where we could pick our own tree to cut down. We did that this year and it was a little bit of a letdown. There were very few trees to choose from and once Tanner started suggesting trees shaped like cactuses I knew that dream would not be fulfilled this year. We ended up picking one that the tree farm had already cut down. And it wasn't stellar. Apparently Iowa isn't known for growing Christmas trees. Who knew? 

 While decorating the house, the kids decided they needed lights on their beds. It was a big hit that I'm sure will have to happen every year. Just a warning to parents...never start something that you don't want to continue year after year, because the children will remember and they will expect it. 

While decorating Mariah put this sign on her door. You can tell I'm always stressing the sleeping baby part. 

 Our tree had a rough start but we were able to whip it into shape. 

 One Wednesday (Tanner's day off) we went to Iowa City for a church meeting. While there, we stopped at the Children's Museum. The kids ran from one exhibit to the next and loved it all. 

I decided this year to celebrate Austin's birthday at the beginning of the month so that I could be motivated to actually make a cake and have a party. I had grand plans for Austin's birthday cake. It was going to be a chocolate cake with crushed candy cane ganache that would be decorated as a puppy. Needless to say, by the end Austin had christened it his "monster cake", but it did taste delicious and that is what matters most. 

 I didn't wait long enough for the ganache to set before putting it between the layers of cake so the top layer kept sliding off. It was real bad. Eliza had a great time helping me put the frosting on though. 

 Austin decorated with sprinkles and toasted coconut (for the hair of the monster) and he wasn't even sad that it wasn't a puppy. Thank goodness for easy pleasers. 

 We had cousins over and it was a great time. Mariah and Chet each made him homemade presents and it was so sweet to see how excited they were to give them to Austin. 

That night we went to the Victorian Stroll in our little town. Each year all of the businesses on the square decorate their windows and have people acting something out inside them. Some windows depicted family scenes, others had artists' painting, leather workers making saddles or quilters. Some businesses were handing out hot chocolate and cookies and several had musicians. There was an elaborate train set and even a reenactment of The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. One window had our neighbors depicting a father coming home from war. Our kids were so excited to see their friends in a window. 

They even had a carriage and a place where you could try roasted chestnuts. Once we got to the roasted chestnuts the kids spotted Santa and couldn't wait so we'll have to wait until next year to try our chestnuts. 

 The first year Austin has willingly sat on Santa's lap. 

 Santa's lap is where my kids ask for the most random things for Christmas. 

 We saw a beautiful ice sculpture of an angel. It is such a neat thing that our community does and we can't wait to go to it again. 

Mariah and Chet were able to play the piano in three different venues and they did so well. In his first performance, Chet kept looking over at Tanner and I with a big ol' grin on his face; it affected his playing but he didn't seem to care. In his second performance, Chet was halfway through his song when he realized that his music was upside down. Without missing a beat he flipped it over and kept on playing. 

Mariah and Chet also got to sing with their choir for a Christmas performance. Mariah sang a duet and did so well on her part. She has such a beautiful, clear voice and wasn't even scared to do it in front of a bunch of people. 

One night Tanner took the boys to a hockey game with the Vandermartins. They had such a great time but no pictures were taken. Chet got a hockey puck and a cow bell and Austin won a free pizza for his dance moves. 

While they were at the game, us girls had a little party of our own. First we went and got some ice cream. 

 After Eliza was in bed Mariah and I watched a Christmas movie together and ate nachos. It was fun spending some one on one time with her. 

 On another night, Tanner and Mariah went to an Albia high school basketball game. Chet is already planning when he'll get to go to a game with dad. 

 We had Shepherd's Night at Brittany and Baydon's and they made the most delicious Gyros. Tanner made a great sheep and we had some real cute shepherds. 

The kids and I got to ring bells for the Salvation Army at a little grocery store in town. I told the kids that they could bring some of their money to donate as well and told them what the money may be used for. Before we went Chet said, "Mom, I've been thinking about how some people don't have homes to live in or food to eat, so I want to give $5." Mariah decided to do the same. Austin was very generous in giving three whole quarters (and we all know those are more valuable than that useless paper money anyway). Mariah and Chet stuck it out for the whole hour singing Christmas songs and loudly declaring, "Merry Christmas!" anytime someone put money in the bucket. And I do believe people are much more likely to donate money when there are four sets of little eyes watching their every move as they approach. Eliza and Austin lost motivation halfway through and hung out in the car the rest of the time where they could dump out sunflower seeds and empty the wipes.

One night we drew pictures of what Jesus's birth meant to each of us.

I love the knives and spurs that Chet and Austin are sporting in Chet's drawing. 

Austin is starting to draw people more often and they are just the cutest.

Mariah even drew the Wisemen's wives all decked out in their finest. She made sure to draw Jesus as a toddler because she really knows the Christmas story.

We made several different cookies and delivered them to friends. Chet and Mariah were so excited to doorbell ditch our neighbors.

18 Months

This girl...she makes me wish I would have enjoyed my other three more when they were this little. I'm starting to get why my parents treated my younger siblings a little differently than they did us older kids. You start to realize that some things matter more while others matter less. 

 She loves her baths...until she doesn't and then she is real unhappy until she is dressed. 

 She loves "ousside" and anytime anyone else heads out she frantically runs for her shoes. Ever since we moved here she has enjoyed walking down to the mailbox with me. 

 "Beebies" are her favorite

 Anything her siblings do, she wants to do...

 It doesn't matter how much she ate at dinner; if dad comes home late, she will be mooching off of him. 

 Eliza is becoming more aware of emotions. When Austin cries she says, "Austie, saaaad". With the cutest concerned face. The other night she brought a towel over to wipe his tears away. She also says "happy!" with the biggest grin on her face. 

 These two are interacting more and more with each other. 

 "Miya" comes up with all kinds of fun things to do with Eliza. 

And Chet is great with her too. He even will sit with her and read her stories. But after looking through recent pictures I can't find any pictures of the two of them together.

 The other day Eliza came to me saying she wanted to go potty. I kept trying to distract her but she would not give in. So I let her sit up there for a while and finally had to make her get down even though she didn't want to. This morning she insisted again and right after putting her on the toilet she went potty! I think it was just coincidence but it was pretty exciting/terrifying, no way do I want to be potty training an 18 month old. 

She loves books and asks everyone in the house to read to her. We have to keep an eye out because she comes in pretty fast with those big books, right for our heads. 

Eliza likes to play with her siblings but she is happiest when she is with her mom or dad. And she always wants "foo!". Which she asks for so desperately you would think she is never fed. But if she doesn't want whatever it is I hand her she will push it as far away from her as she can with a lot of attitude to go with it. 

She still nurses at night because I just can't give up that special cuddling time with her. Whenever I turn the light off she says, "dahk, dahk!" in an excited voice. It's adorable. 

We just love this girl and we all acknowledge that she is the boss because she's too precious to say no to.