Christmas Day

Luckily, the kids weren't up at the "crack of dawn"! As you can see, Kaleb was sound asleep at 7:30 a.m. and we had to wake him to go open presents. (Jakob was actually in his room watching tv until it was time to go downstairs..?).

I have more video than pictures this year =(.

Although Kaleb wasn't into the unwrapping part, the kids loved their presents. Jake was a little disappointed with the train that came with his new Thomas movie as he had it already...and he was quick to point out that Santa brought a game made exclusively for Target (uh, Santa had to shop at Target in the North Pole!). Jakob ended up playing with Kaleb's toys and Kaleb played with Jake's. Maybe I should rethink the gifts for next year...

Todd looking for the chap stick he lost.

If you know Todd, he would have searched all day if he had to....

Grammy and Grampy arrived first, then Kevin and his family and finally Nana and Candi. We had lasagna, meatballs, and Italian sausage for lunch. After we ate, we opened gifts. Here are my favorites (dig photo frame, photo stamps, and Japanese Cherry Blossom from Bath & Body Works).

After gifts we enjoyed cheesecake, chocolate cream pie, Mexican hot chocolate, and cookies.

Nana playing a game with Jakob and Shawn

Resting after a busy day!

Christmas Eve

I decided to save my wrapping for tonight...it's pretty late, but had to wait for my Dad to pick up hamburger on his way home from work. Just realxed today, ran an errand with Jake. Todd came home around lunch time.

The boys each opened one gift (both from Scott & Rachel) tonight.

Before bed, we sprinkled "Reindeer Food" in the backyard with the thought that the shiny glitter will sparkle in the moonlight and the smell of oats will guide Rudolph to our house.

Jakob left cookies for Santa...

And yes, matching jammies...

As visions of sugar plums danced in his head...

Holiday Happenings

We headed to church this morning..Pastor Rob had a really good message. After the service, there was a turkey/ham diner. The food was good and so were the desserts! Of course, Todd had 2 plates..he was the only one!

We then went on a mini road trip to visit Charlie. He had some gifts for the boys; he liked the pictures we brought.

Bahstin

The family (minus Kaleb and I...still wasn't feeling good) headed to Boston today. They checked out the Museum of Science and had dinner at the Union St. Oyster House. Jake had so much fun with Daddy, Scott, Rachel, and Nana. Jake kept telling me he had dinner "AT THE OLDEST FISH HOUSE!".

Special Dinner

We had dinner with Nana, Scott, and Rachel tonight at Illiano's. Was the food good....had a little too much to eat, but still had to have my Tiramisu.

O Holy Night

I learned tonight that Gram loved the song O Holy Night. This song has been my favorite for as long as I can remember. My favorite version is sung by Selah. (Click the title above for more information on the songs origin). Gram's service was nice and the church was beautifully decorated. It was nice seeing everyone, missed Gretchen and Daylyn. We met Derek's fiance Lesley (Kaleb just fell in love with her!).

Cookies, Hot Chocolate, and a Special Visit

Uncle Kevin came from Denver to attend Gram's memorial service. We had a chance to spend some time with him during his short visit. Jakob opened the front door and exclaimed "The pizza guy his here!" (it was actually Kevin holding 2 boxes of pizza for dinner)...it was funny! After dinner I made cookies and we drank hot chocolate (if you look close enough, you can see a line of marshmallow on his cheek) while the boys played video games.

Gram

Gram passed away this morning. I told Jake that she went to Heaven to be with Gramp. He said that he was sad and that he would miss her, but now she and Gramp could be "togeder".

Happy Thanksgiving

The temperature outside read 73 degrees as the turkey was being cooked in the fryar. It was warm and beautiful out!

My brother arrived early and my parents were late. I did most of the cooking this year as I didn't want anyone in "my kitchen"..hahaha...and my Mom was able to relax for once! Kaleb enjoyed a little bit of everything for his first Thanksgiving meal....Jake at a few things..Shawn ate hardly anything.

After dinner, everyone relaxed; I had the house put back together by 3 p.m. Nana came after 5 for dessert and leftovers. She and Kaleb enjoyed a little nap.

*click the yellow person in the lower left hand corner of the slideshow, then click on the album name for a larger view

Family~ Kevin and Shawn