Monday, February 28, 2011

Baby's First Christmas!

We had had such a fun Christmas season that Christmas morning was slightly bittersweet.  I was thrilled that it was finally here and that the boys would get to have their Christmas gifts and we'd get to hang out with my family, but I was also a little bummed that I wouldn't hear "We forgot to do our Advent Calendar" the second Jack was done with his last bite of breakfast every single day, just like I had for the last month!  As always, though, the excitement quickly pushed out the disappointment, and the magic of Christmas was abundant this Christmas!
As I said in my last post, Jack was pretty disappointed when he woke up on Christmas and saw that there was no snow... he thought that no snow meant it wasn't Christmas!  After I explained to him, though, that Santa's sleigh didn't have to have snow to land, he looked a little more hopeful.  And then, when I reminded him that we should check on the milk and cookies and stockings to see if Santa had been here, he lit up!  He ran to the cookies and yelled "Mom!  Santa ate the cookies but he left one bite there!"  I told him that Santa must have been too full from the yummy cookies Jack made him to finish another bite!  Then he checked the stockings and was thrilled to see that they were full!  
Since Dave was working Christmas Eve, we had to wait for him to get home before we could open our presents.  It was so hard for Jack to wait, but he did a great job being patient.  Since Dave wouldn't be home for another few couple hours the kids and I had breakfast, and I let the boys open their stockings while we waited for daddy.
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Jack had a great time playing with his gifts from Santa... especially the lantern, which I explained to him that Santa thought it would be a good reading lamp for him!  Jack is allowed to bring one book to bed with him each night, and with this lamp hanging on his bed he has enough light to read, and he didn't have to get back out of bed to turn off the light!  That Santa is so smart!  Jack was thrilled about the lamp and played with it all morning as we waited for Dave to come home.  Here he is showing off his lamp, one of his new Toy Story 3 figurines, and his too-small jammies!

The boys and I were so excited when daddy got home!  He got to hear all about how Santa had left one bite left on the cookie plate, how Santa had come even though there was no snow, and he got a presentation of everything that Santa had put in his and Sam's stockings!  Then, Jack insisted that daddy needed to open his stocking right away!  So I got it down and gave it to Jack to give to Dave and the boys helped him open it!  He got his favorite snacks- Snapea Crisps!


By the way, Jack didn't think about my stocking until our morning was all over and he noticed that I hadn't opened my stocking!  I hadn't planned on opening it unless he asked me to- Santa had gotten me 4 bags of Mint M&Ms and I didn't really want to share!  LOL!  Anyway, our Christmas morning went really well.  Jack was sufficiently surprised and excited for each gift and exclaimed and oohed and aahed for everything!  Sam really wasn't interested in opening gifts at all.  He did open one and he liked it, but that was all he wanted to open and I didn't force him or bug him about it.  As a result he still had a present to open 2 weeks later!  he was much more interested that time!


I saved the best for last, of course.  Jack had asked for 2 main gifts, GeoTrax (he got some more track, but no new engines), and Chuggington.  When someone asked him what he wanted for Christmas, he'd almost always answer "Chuggington Toys!"  So I made sure to get those for him... and I made sure that he opened all his other gifts before opening these!  We got him most of the engines and cars, the roundhouse with some track, and the Wilson Carrying Case for the engines and cars.  He was so excited when he opened them, and I was thrilled at his reaction!  If the carrying case hadn't come for free with my purchase I probably wouldn't have gotten it for him, and that was his favorite part of the gift!  He loves that his trains and train cars all have a place to sleep at night, and he always makes sure that the appropriate engines are in the appropriate stalls in the roundhouse and that all the rest of the engines and cars have a stall in the carrying case- which he calls the Wilson roundhouse.  That gift was definitely a hit!


He and his too-small jammies got to playing straight away!

While Jack played, I put Sam down for a nap and started working on frosting the cookies to take to Aunt Sandra's house and making the cinnamon rolls that I was supposed to take to brunch at my mom's house (yes, I know I had already given my boys breakfast... I knew Jack wouldn't eat anything at my mom's house since he'd be too excited.  I was right.).  When Sam woke up early (poor kid had a horrible nap that day) Dave helped me finish frosting the cookies while I got the boys dressed and we loaded up the car to get to my mom's house, where my family was waiting for us!  When we got there, Jack told Grammy and everyone about how Santa came and left one bite of cookie and that he "got the Chuggington toys, just like I been wanting for such a long time!"  Dave and I ate while the boys played, and then we all gathered in the living room for more Christmas!

First, everyone opened their stockings.  Well, the boys did anyway... the rest of us were having too much fun watching them!
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Then we all sat back and relaxed as Jack helped each of us pass out our gifts, and we started our not-as-systematic-as-in-years-past gift-opening procedures!

Then we took our traditional family Christmas photo!  Unfortunately, the one of my family from my camera is out of focus, and I didn't have any of my whole family together. 

Luckily, though, my mom sent me the pics she got with her camera!
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After we were done at my mom's we headed over my Aunt Sandra's house!  We always have so much fun seeing our family there!  And, of course, Santa!!!  Santa always comes to Aunt Sandra's house on Christmas Day, and all of the kids are always so thrilled to see him!  Well, almost all of the kids... Luke and Sam really didn't appreciate us all forcing them to talk to the strange man with the white beard!  Luke couldn't get away fast enough, and Sam flipped out when I got 3 feet away from him, so I just held him next to Santa.
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Jack, of course, was really excited to see Santa!  Especially since he knew that Santa had a gift for him!  He sat so patiently waiting for Santa to call his name, and as soon as he did he yelled "That's me!  I'm Jackson!" and with a huge smile on his face he jumped off of daddy's lap and ran up to Santa!  I told him that I wanted him to sit on his lap and smile and say cheese before he could open his present, and he followed directions!  He even made sure to tell Santa thanks for the gift!  And of course, after he opened it he had to run to Santa to show him what he got for Jack!
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We didn't stay incredibly long this year.  We started later than previous years, and Sam was having a rough time being surrounded by so many people, Dave was tired from work the previous day and he still had to work the next day, Jack was having a blast but really wanted to get home to play with his Chuggington toys, and I like to keep my boys happy.  Once again, we had had a great Christmas!

Here are a few more random Christmas pics:


Sunday, February 27, 2011

It Never Snows In LA. So Santa, Don't Bring Me A Sleigh!

Dave had to work on Christmas Eve again this year, so the boys and I had a pretty low-key day.  I started out the day, of course, with a hilarious conversation with Jack!

Jack, running into my room: Mom, is it Christmas Eve?
Me: Yup!  It sure is!"
Jack (looking into the backyard): But I don't see any snow!
Me: Oh, dude we don't live in a city that gets snow, not even for Christmas.
Jack: Oh.  Well, maybe there is snow in the front yard! Come on, let's go check!

I died, of course.  We stayed in our PJs for a while and relaxed and played all morning and into the afternoon until it was time to get ready for church!  I got the boys in their matching shirts...
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They discussed how they will, 13 years from now, look back and roll their eyes at their mother making them wear matching shirts...

And then we went and picked up grandma to go to church.  After church, we went and picked up grandpa (who couldn't come to church with us due to responsibilities at his church) and had dinner, and then we drove over to Sleepy Hollow to check out the Christmas lights!!!  And Oh.My.Gosh but I can't believe that I forgot the camera!!!  I really wish that I had brought it, because I would have taken a video of Jack when we ran into Santa!  He was so funny!  He was joking with him and teasing him, and just cracking everyone up!  Here is an idea of how their conversation went: 

Jack: Hello Santa, it's me!  Jackson, remember?
Santa: Well, of course I remember you! What would you like me to bring you for Christmas, Jackson?
Jack: Oh Santa, you're so silly!  I already told you, I want the Chuggington toys!
Santa: Wow that sounds great! Are you going to be a good boy and go to bed tonight so that I can come to your house?
Jack: Um, yes Santa I will be a good boy- but listen! Ching ching ching ching!  Do you hear that?  Ching ching ching ching! What do you think that noise is?  Ching ching ching ching!
Santa: That noise? well... it, uh...
Jack: I think it sounds like Jingle Bells!  Ching ching ching ching!  Ha ha ha, Santa you're so silly!  Oh, Santa we made cookies for you but you can't have them until you come to my house!
Santa: Oh what kind of-
Jack: We made train cookies and snowman cookies and tree cookies and firetruck cookies, and jingle bell cookies and everything! 

They went on like that for so long, and I was dying at all the things Jack told him, and that he hardly let Santa get a word into the conversation!  So. Funny.

After walking through the Christmas lights, we didn't get home until just past the kids' bedtime, and while Jack was okay, Sam was DONE.  Unfortunately, since it was late and Sam needed to go to bed immediately, I wasn't able to give him his Christmas Eve gift (it is our tradition to give one gift- pajamas- on Christmas Eve).  Jack, on the other hand, got to open his gift as soon as I was done putting Sam to bed!  My parents stayed and played with Jack while I changed and nursed Sam and put him to bed, and then I gave Jack his jammies!  Let me tell you, that poor kid needed new jammies so badly!  His jammies were all from the Christmas before, and he had grown so much since then!  I couldn't wait to give him his new jammies- not only were they 5T and should fit him much better, but they were Thomas jammies!  And Jack LOVED them!

Except... they barely fit him!!!  My 3 year old was too big for 5Ts?!  Insane!  I knew that they didn't have any larger sizes in those same pjs though, and since I had assumed they'd fit him I had already taken the tags off, so he got to keep them.  I don't think I could have taken them back, though- he adores those pjs!  Oh, and FYI, I had also gotten him 4 other new pairs of 5T jammies... all of which he's stretching out!  I should have skipped 5Ts and gone straight to the big boys section.  But I've definitely been doing that ever since!

After Jack opened his jammies and put them on, I had him pick out some cookies for Santa,

Pour Santa some (rice) milk,

And then Jack and I set them out for Santa!  He was so serious about being careful with those cookies!

He was sooooo excited when he went to bed, and in the morning he came running into my room, with "Mom, is it Christmas?  Wait, I don't see any snow.  I don't think it's Christmas."  Poor kid looked so dejected!  Next year I'm special ordering a snowstorm right above my house!