Christmas Painting

We decorated some of our packages by hand this year. John David helped too, but I didn't get his picture. His was a beautiful Christmas tree!

Aulora Likes....

Presents

and sprinkles.

Lots of sprinkles.

The end.

(just a few more old pictures I never posted from Christmas)

A TON of Christmas Videos!

A VERY Belated Christmas Post

It's March and here's a post full of Christmas pictures. I did it on purpose so that the joy of Christmas could be stretched further into the year. Like, into spring even. You're welcome.

We celebrated Christmas at home with my side of the family (my parents, my grandma, and my brother) and then we all drove to Tulsa. We went to be with John's side of the family and my parents went so they could continue on into Dallas and Austin to be with family there. So yes, there is a picture or two of my family at John's family's house. Confused yet?

Pictures were taken here at our house, but my dad took them with his camera and I don't have them. (Dad? That's your cue!) Some more posts will come later on in the day with some videos.

If you are a grandparent then you will probably love this post. If you are anyone else, run! =)

Julia helped decorate the tree at home.

John David was mighty helpful too. (Until he went scissor happy wanting to "trim" the tree a little too much!)

John made "Bananas Foster" for our Christmas dessert.

He set each batch on fire as he brought it to the table. It was hard to capture that action!

All the babies loved on Mimi.

John David roasted some marshmallows in the fireplace on the back porch.

Every time we turned around Aulora was dancing in one of the living rooms. Dodie was dancing with her this time while Gran played the piano.

We had a birthday cake for Jesus. It was SO good! (and chocolate!) Thank you Jesus for being born! ;)

Julia worked hard with Aunt Kara on a gingerbread house. I think she was mostly busy eating it though.

Aulora has that look on her face because her mouth is stuffed with candy.

That's more like it.

There they are dancing again and this time Joshua is trying to join them.

On Christmas morning John David received a note to let him know that Santa was too lame to bring his present inside.

He ran outside and discovered his very own go kart!

Aulora got her first bike!

A family meal

Gran and D at the head of the table

Uncle Zach gave Aulora a Memory game.

Not sure of the reason for the kiss but it's still sweet.

Joshua was the first allowed to run in and see what Santa brought. He got a Buzz tricycle and a big dinosaur.

There's Aulora finding her bike.

Julia is always happy for another Webkinz and she also got the Tangled doll house.

Thanks Gran and D for my Christmas Barbie!

The girls were each given a new Madame Alexander doll.

John David had his new lego set built in no time.

Reece, one of the dogs, was busy inspecting Joshua's new things.

I should probably explain to Aulora the difference between a pretty laugh and an ugly laugh. ;)

Breaking the Silence

Christmas 2010

Soooo behind on posting.....I blame it on the holidays, John's surgery and ongoing recovery, massive amounts of ebay listings, lots of snow to shovel, and a subscription to Netflix for the first time ever.

Postings will be back to normal soon. Probably. Hopefully. Maybe. =)

Christmas at Home

We celebrated Christmas at our home the Saturday before Christmas. We didn’t wake up and go straight to the gifts though. We got dressed, ate our traditional Pillsbury cinnamon rolls (orange is the best flavor!), and even did some cleaning. It was kind of a last minute decision to do it the way we did.

Joshua was super cute opening his things. He got a couple of Diego toys and his very own Buzz Lightyear! He reminds me of his daddy when he opens presents. Very serious and thoughtful. I was glad to capture a little smile when he opened his “Rescue Pack”. We already owned the “Backpack” so now he goes around carrying both of them…..

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Aulora was so excited to get the Miss Goodbee motor home toy. The child is so in love with all things Miss Goodbee. She and Julia also got matching Baby Alive dolls. These dolls came with a little fairy skirt for the doll and a bigger one for the child. Aulora constantly puts hers on on top of whatever she’s wearing. Real clothes, pajamas, whatever. It’s super adorable.

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Julia got her very own Hello Kitty hair dryer (shhhh! Mommy’s been using it too!), her Baby Alive, some clothes, a movie, and a leapster game. She was thrilled about her own things, but was also very excited about everyone else’s things too. What a little mommy she is.

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John David was hard pressed to wait for his turn to open things. (Patience is not yet his forte.) He got a great big Star Wars blanket, some books, a Monopoly card game that turned out to be a lot of fun, and some legos. He was also enjoying Joshua’s Buzz Lightyear. We were reminiscing about how much he LOVED all things Buzz when he was little. So far Joshua isn’t quite as impressed, but we’re working on it. I LOVE Toy Story! (Can’t wait for number three in June!!!)

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The Girls Sing and a Snippet of the Christmas Program

We're so excited here at our house that Christmas is only 7 days away! After school today, Julia decided to throw a birthday party for Jesus with Aulora since Aulora didn't get to have a school party. They put stuffed animals in all the chairs and set out treats and decorations. They even had a goody bag ready in the corner. I heard them from upstairs and Julia was leading Aulora in singing the birthday song. Too cute! I had them do it again for the camera. You'll see in the video that Aulora was a little busy enjoying her treat to sing again.

The school program was last night. It was very sweet and the kids were pumped about the night. I tried to take more video but I had a little too much help from Mr. Joshua. Enjoy. =)