Christmas 2012 Recap

Better three weeks later than never, right?

Christmas was wonderful this year. All three kids were old enough to understand at least some of the craziness going on around them and the four parents, two grandparents, and partridge in a pear tree loved watching Christmas through the innocent and not-yet-in-any-way suspicious eyes of Will, Hallie, and Lily.

As always, Christmas Eve was spent attending the children's service at church (which Will loved, Hallie ignored, and Lily chattered excitedly through), enjoying delicious soups and chili for dinner, and opening one gift from under the tree in matching/coordinating pajamas. You have no idea how hard it is to find matching/coordinating pajamas (that are also age and gender appropriate) for a six-year-old boy, a three-year-old girl, and a two-year-old girl. It's going to be even tougher next year, when Sara and I are shopping for an eight-year-old boy, a four-year-old girl, a three-year-old girl, and a one-year-old boy.

Try not to look TOO excited, Will.  

That's better.  Or it would be, if either little girl was looking at the camera.

"Awwww, a new Knuffle Bunny!"
Hallie lost her first Knuffle Bunny, and mean mom that I am,
I wouldn't buy her a new one.  When I told her this, she looked
me right in the eye and said, "FINE.  GRANDMA will buy me
a new one."  And sure enough, Grandma delivered.

Will, opening his new bank.

"Angelina Ballerina!  Who's Angelina Ballerina?"

When Sara and I were younger, my aunt used to make all of the cousins line up - in order by age - on the stairs on Christmas morning.  The youngest cousin present, who would be sitting in the front of the line, had to hold a sign with the year printed on it and then we all had to smile for pictures and cheerfully say, "Merry Christmas!" for the video camera.  The "rules" (which I'd like to get my hands on someday) stated that once you were married, your spouse sat with you on your step, so when Tom and then Jeff joined the family they had to share our steps with us.  We all wished that once - just once - my aunt would forget about this tradition.

The same rules also stated that once you produced a replacement for yourself - as in created a child - the  replacement could take your spot on the step.  My absolute favorite year of this tradition was the year Will took mine and Tom's place but Sara and Jeff still had to join in the fun.

The funniest thing about this tradition is that as much as Sara and I hated it, we now make our kids participate in it as well.  This is honestly the best picture of the three kids on the stairs - it's blurry, not one of the three kids is looking at the camera, and one kid is screaming.  I'm not sure how much longer we'll force this tradition on them...

After the lovely stairs photo, we let them loose to discover their gifts from Santa, what Santa had left them in their stockings, and what their parents and grandparents had given them.

Coming down the stairs.

Santa brought Will a skateboard.

Santa brought Hallie roller-skates.  (Santa brought Lily a dollhouse, but she wasn't all that
interested in it so I don't have a picture of the moment she "discovered" her Santa gift.)

I don't really know what to say about this one...
These glasses are still popular three weeks after
Christmas - Hallie wears them while she brushes her teeth.

Hallie was a big fan of Lily's dollhouse.

And Lily was a big fan of Hallie's roller-skates.

Lily was also a big fan of Hallie's karaoke machine.
To be fair, so was I - my mom even bought me my own microphone so
that Hallie and I can sing duets.  If Hallie will LET me sing duets with her, that is.

Tom was super excited about his new Detroit Tigers baseball cap and Lego Mindstorms.  

And Grandpa Paul was super excited about dressing like a reindeer.

Lily - wearing her jammies and new pink tutu
and Cinderella shirt - and Aunt Sara.

The girls at breakfast - both were wearing their new pink tutus and Cinderella shirts over their jammies.

Getting ready to skateboard in the basement.

From that point on we just repeated the cycle of eat, relax, watch a Twilight movie, and play over and over again. It was truly a very merry Christmas.