Sorry I've been lazy about posting our Christmas pics. It has been a very lazy Christmas for us. This year we made the decision not to travel for the holidays. This was the first year we were away from our families for Christmas, so it was a hard decision to make, but I think it was a good one. Let me explain...
For starters, we made the decision in part because we are exhausted and I just honestly didn't think we could survive another trip home. I don't think God ever intended for people to live so far away from their families, because, well, life and raising children is tough work. There's a reason God made grandmas and grandpas and sisters and brothers and aunts and uncles--to help take the burden off some of the stress of life. And yet, we have none of that where we live. I'm ever so envious of my friends who talk about their "weekend getaways" while their kids stay with grandmas and grandpas. And while, I honestly am not sure I'd be able to go away for an entire weekend without my kids (especially considering they are still so little) at the same time, it sure would be nice to go to the movies with my husband every now and again, or out to dinner, or heaven forbid... to (dare I say?) sleep in! Which is why we just honestly needed to stay home. For those of you who've ever traveled with little ones, you know that traveling on your time off is not really much of a break. In fact, most of the time you end up more tired and stressed out than when you started, almost needing a vacation from your vacation. But unfortunately, having no grandmas or family where we live, we never get a break. And we needed one.
Secondly, now that Elizabeth is to the age that she really understands Christmas, we wanted to witness the magic of walking downstairs to see what Santa and had brought, in our own home. To wake up in our own beds, and to start our own traditions. It's complicated to travel home for Christmas, to have to "call" Santa and arrange for all the stockings and presents to be brought/shipped to grandmas house. And honestly, it just isn't the same. I think there's something special about Christmas morning that should be experienced at home, your own home--so we were excited to be able to have that for the first time.
Finally, I think we were tired of having to "do" Christmas. It sounds terrible, but when we go back home for Christmas year after year, we are usually there for a week or less (which isn't much time), and so we have to cram in as many visits to family as possible. We rush from one grandma's house to another and back again. And while we love visiting with our family, it always makes Christmas feel a little stressful and rushed. Go here, see this person, do that, buy this, wrap that, go here, dinner there. It's usually pretty crazy. So we figured by staying home we could go at our own pace and really focus on the true meaning of the holiday, verses feeling like we are "doing" Christmas.
With all that said, if I had my way, we could do both. We could wake up in our own beds and experience Christmas with our own little family, and then get in our cars and drive 20 minutes down the road to see grandmas and grandpas and aunts and uncles and experience the whole "family-Christmas-chaos" thing, minus the stress of travel. But, alas, we don't have that option. It makes me sad because I do wish my children could grow up around family--I think it's so important and I think both Vassil and I realize from our own childhoods how much we gained from having a lot of family around. But at the same time, this is where my husband works. He's a chemist. A very good chemist at that. And there just aren't positions in good old Kansas (or really anywhere in the midwest for that matter) that are anything near what he does and loves. So, for now, this is it.We also figured we could head back to Wichita when the weather is nicer and when we can stay longer, so that it doesn't feel rushed and crazy. Maybe Spring Break? We'll see...
Anyway, Christmas this year was a little bittersweet. It was so nice to be able to do all the things mentioned.... to go slow, no rushing or stress, to wake up in our own beds, and come down to see what Santa had brought us, and to focus on the true meaning. At the same time, it was sad not having our family around to experience it with. Overall, though, I feel it was a really nice Christmas! And, as you can see from my first few pics, a white one at that! Here's the recap.
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Christmas really is a celebration that lasts all month long. From the holiday decor which we put up early this year, to the Christmas cookies and gingerbread house, to the carols and hot cocoa, from setting out the Nativity and having lots of conversations about the true meaning of Christmas, along with lots of stories of our cultural traditions of Santa, the Christmas season really did last all month long.
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Christmas really is a celebration that lasts all month long. From the holiday decor which we put up early this year, to the Christmas cookies and gingerbread house, to the carols and hot cocoa, from setting out the Nativity and having lots of conversations about the true meaning of Christmas, along with lots of stories of our cultural traditions of Santa, the Christmas season really did last all month long.
New this year, was our "Elf on the Shelf," who arrived from Santa at the end of November to help keep a watchful eye on our children. In case you are wondering, not all children receive an Elf on the Shelf, only the ones who need an extra set of eyes--lol. The elf comes w/a storybook that explains how he works (in case you don't have an elf, he flies away each night to the North Pole to report to Santa all the things he saw and heard that day, and then returns, only to find a new spot in the house the next morning). Anyway, we named him Collins, and it was so much fun each morning to come down and find where he'd moved to. Some mornings we'd come down and he'd be in the same spot (oops!) but the book explains that he has magic, and we aren't to touch him or his magic will leave and he won't be able to fly. I guess on the days he didn't move and was in the same spot, someone must have touched him too much the previous day (or at least, that's what we figured--lol). It was funny, too, because several times Elizabeth would come running and would tell me that she saw Collins blink or move! And several times I caught her whispering something to him--lol! It was a lot of fun!
Another new tradition was that on Christmas Eve we decided to let the kids open up a few presents. The kids had SO much, and also I had a few presents that I wanted them to have before Christmas. They received two Hallmark recordable books that night. The first was "Twas the Night Before Christmas" recorded by Nana, Gpa Clay, and Aunt Maddie. So cool! And the 2nd was "The Very First Christmas" a story about the nativity recorded by mommy and daddy. The kids really liked the stories, and it took a minute before they realized who had recorded them--lol. That same night they also opened up their matching jammies--which I thought might be a fun tradition to start.
I know most kids aren't excited by books and jammies--but my kids were! They loved them both, including the jammies! I told them they were "elf" jammies, and they were SO excited to get them on right away!
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The next morning when we came down, this is what we found (please ignore the fact that we had all just rolled out of bed!). This is our longest video to date, and is probably only riveting to the family back home, but considering they weren't there to see it, I thought I'd post.
My favorite part from looking back on the video is how excited Elizabeth got after finding the Bible in her stocking. "Mother! The Bible! I got a Bible. It's God's Word! Look, Mother! God's Word!"
She was so happy! I love that she loves the Bible!
OH, and it's also funny that she's been calling me mother lately--lol.
As you can see from the video, the first thing Liam caught sight of Christmas morning was the doll stroller. He loves pushing things around, so I had a feeling they were both going to like this present from Santa. The first thing Elizabeth spotted was her Princess blanket and Princess shoes and immediately wanted to take them up to her room!
The kids were totally spoiled! Lots of things from Santa. A few things from mommy and daddy, a few things from lots of grandmas and grandpas and aunts and uncles. This is the part I'm always torn on when it comes to Christmas. I love getting for my kids and my family. At the same time, we know there is so much suffering in the world--and that a fraction of what Americans spend on Christmas can help eliminate extreme poverty in the world all together! I like to think our family did a little of both--a few things for our loved ones, and giving beyond our tithe for a special Christmas donation to help those without.
The biggest "hit" this year was BY FAR the kiddos electric tooth-brushes the kids found in their stockings. It is an understatement to say they LOVED them! Before we had opened presents, they were busy brushing their teeth. In fact, we couldn't get them to stop brushing to open their presents (crazy right?!)---so while opening presents, we heard "Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzz" the whole time. It was so funny! It's always the little things that they love best, isn't it?!
Best part is they continue to love their tooth brushes and want to brush their teeth at all times of the day. What a great gift! Thanks Santa!
Another big hit was the mechanical puppy dog that walks and barks and does a flip that Nana sent for Liam. I'm sure you've probably seen something similar in the mall. My kids always go ga-ga when they see those little dogs come barking and jumping out of the toy stores and little mall kiosks. Well, as expected, both kids LOVE that little guy and it has been the source of World War III ever since we opened him. A huge lesson on sharing I suppose! Lol!
Another new tradition this year was a birthday cake for Jesus. I had never heard of such a thing until this year, when I heard multiple people mention that they always do this every year. I thought it was a FABULOUS idea, especially for the kids, so they could remember what all the presents were about--to celebrate the birthday of our Savior. I'm thinking when they are older we could even take this a little bit further by talking about what they think Jesus would want for his birthday, and then trying to live that out or give that gift for Christmas.
I made the cake very quickly, so please ignore the fact that it is very far from perfect. I figured Jesus wouldn't care if it wasn't perfectly smooth--lol. Elizabeth and Liam helped make the cake by stirring the batter and licking the spoons--lol. Then Elizabeth helped add the sprinkles, redhots, and birthday candles for the finishing touch. I think it turned out great! It was so cute because as Elizabeth was adding the sprinkles she whispered, "Jesus is going to love this!" We will definitely be doing this each year in the future! Our 2's 3s Sunday School class was also planning on a little party for Jesus--but because of the snow, church services were canceled, so our belated birthday party will be next Sunday and I'll try to post some pics of that soon.
As mentioned on Christmas night, just before midnight, a huge snow storm blew through our state. It was the first White Christmas our area had experience in 63 years! And it was a lot of snow--ranging from about 5-12''. In fact, the day before it had even hit, our governor declared a state of emergency. Growing up in Kansas, it always cracks me up how a few inches of snow can really immobilize this state. Of course, this time it wasn't funny. Not funny at all, in fact. My mom and sis had planned to arrive the day after Christmas to spend close to a week with us and the kids. It was the perfect solution to the fact that we didn't want to travel for Christmas--since they'd be coming to us.
It's a long story, but because of the snowstorm, my family's flight was canceled, rescheduled a few days later. When they arrived for the rescheduled flight, there was mass chaos at the airport, all the computer check ins were down, online checkins weren't working, and there were only 2 people manning the Delta desk, and 3 flights were headed out of Delta in the span of of a few hours. In other words, close to 300 people and mass hysteria. My mom was telling me stories of the people going crazy to check in on time. One guy waiting was a Marine and starting yelling that if he didn't get back to base he was going to be discharged and lose his livelihood. He didn't make the flight. Another woman was trying to get back home for her own wedding. She also didn't make it. Neither did my family. They said they could place them on standby and then they'd be on standby in Atlanta as well, or wait another day. It was all too much, so my mom decided to just cancel. It was a huge disappointment for both sides. My mom stood in so many lines and tried everything in her power to get here--it was clear, though, that God must have really needed them back in Wichita for Christmas.
We decided to make the best of it by making a snowman and some snowcream. This was actually our very first snowcream ever (it is VERY big here... I think it must be a southern thing?) But SOOOOO yummy!!!! Tasted just like real homemade icecream! Elizabeth and daddy had lots of fun in the snow--making Frosty and throwing snowballs and making snow angels. Liam lasted about 2 minutes before he was crying to come inside. So mommy and Liam watched from the warmth of the window.
Anyway, we hope you and yours had a very blessed Christmas! I know despite not being with our extended families, it was still a great Christmas and I feel so blessed that we've had this time off to just hang out and laze around. I think we needed that.
Merry Christmas Everyone!
