Catch up on Christmas

For us, Christmas starts the day after Thanksgiving with a tree-hunt (We may sneak in some Christmas music before this but I always at least wait until after Halloween before I will allow myself to listen).  When we were living in Utah, we would always go up the mountain and find and cut our own tree but since living out in the Midwest, we have had to become a little more boring about this since there are really no mountains covered in pine-trees :)  I still can't bring myself to only do a fake tree so we have had some "live" tree's from Home Depot a few times but really, nothing beats a fresh cut tree simply for the experience of finding and picking out that "perfect" family tree.  This is our 2nd time at a tree farm and although it is not quite the mountains, we had a lot of fun...well most of us did.  

Do you see my arm around Kimball?  Well what was really going on in that picture is I was holding him back from running away so we could at least get one picture with all of us together.  He was mad that we did not choose the tree he wanted but rather we wanted to go around and look at more trees.  :)

There were a lot of beautiful trees there.  This was Jaroms first experience going and picking a tree together.  He could care less about the trees but the dirt was calling his name.  

The kids made friends quickly with the owners dogs and chickens.  We really did have a great time.

When we get home, the kids don't want to waste any time and start decorating right away.  I love how excited they get about decorating for the Holidays.  It reminds me so much of myself when I was young but now I understand my mom's hesitation a lot more.  The day after Thanksgiving (which was preceded by a a few days in the kitchen baking) and a tree-hunt that morning and I was feeling that hesitation myself.  I just wanted to go lay down and sleep for a few days, but that didn't happen. 

I love the way Kimball decorated his own room for Christmas.  Grab a can out of the recycling and a few tree leftovers and you've got yourself a perfectly good decoration.  

Our December was full of fun times and fun traditions.  We went to "Whoville" at our friends the Morris's and had a fun Grinch night.  It was so much fun, complete with Roast Beast and fun name-tags and more.

It was fun to be able to do Jaroms hair but Ammon wouldn't let me do his ;)

Little Cindy-Lou Who

older Cindy Lou-Who

And of course we had to visit Santa at Bass Pro Shop.  They go all out for Christmas there and I love it.  It was also nice that we could go in the middle of the day when everyone else was in school and not have to wait in any lines or be rushed when we were visiting with Santa Clause.

One thing we did this year that I loved but didn't get any pictures of, was for homeschool, I had each of the kids choose a country that we have ancestors from, and then they had to research and present it and we did a lot of the traditions and had traditional holiday food from that country.  It was so much fun to leave our shoes out for Sinterclause to come, and to have a rice pudding and whoever got the hidden almond, got a surprise.  So many fun traditions that I think we will continue every year.

One of the things I loved most though was that Ammon had a 6 WEEK BREAK from school!!!! It was heaven! Of course he was working but when he was home, he was home so there was a lot of this going on...

We went down to the Lauritzen Botanical Gardens by our house to see the Poinsettia show, which is always beautiful.  Jarom was mesmerized by the trains.

On Christmas Eve day, we always make ornaments for the animals by stringing popcorn and rolling pine cones in peanut butter and birdseed and getting lots of apples and orange slices on strings to hang and then we read "the Night Tree" and go decorate a Christmas tree for the animals.  We have loved doing this but this year was amazingly cold.  Like FRIGID!  It may not look like it, but we were freezing our patooties off.  

We started another new tradition this year.  On Christmas Eve, before we do the Nativity, we did a Night in Bethlehem.  We had dinner by candlelight and had a lot of the food that would have been eating by Mary and Joseph.  We had unleavened bread, olives, dates, figs, goat cheese, fish and hummus.  We all really enjoyed it.  It wasn't the typical Clam Chowder that has been our tradition but it was fun and memorable.  I think we will continue this tradition.  

After dinner we joined the Call family for a Nativity program that was so cute and fun.  I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

I LOVE this picture of Mary and her BFF Angel.  Don't they look so excited that Mary is expecting.

After the Nativity, we went home to get ready for Santa and open our Christmas Jammies.  Even Chloe got matching jammies this year

Would you believe that I really hardly took any pictures on Christmas?  You think I would learn, but we are all just enjoying the day and I don't stop to snap.  These were the only 2 pictures I took.

 To end our wonderful 2014 year, we Partied it up with who else, but the Call family.  It was a blast.  We made homemade donuts (YUMMY!)

played lots of fun minute-to-win-it games 

 (this picture kills me every time I see it)

and had a rockin time with Wii Dance and lots and lots of laughs.  It was the best!  And that completes our 2014 year!  Whew, I did it.  I'm almost all the way caught up.  Thank goodness!