December Happenings

December was a very busy month!  We came back from St. Louis, got ready for Christmas, had Vic's parents & brother Josh over for a weekend, had Tommy's birthday weekend, partied w/ the Wheelers, did Christmas treats for neighbors, a few Christmas activities around town, and got ready for Jason & Katie's visit.  For Jason's birthday party, we had 5 out of 6 of us kids there, both my mom and dad, and my Aunt Pam & cousin.  It was a few hours of bliss for me.  It brought back memories of what holidays were like when I was a kid.  Some people were watching movies, kids were running all over, some were napping on the couch, and the rest of us were playing games.  It was a wonderful end to the holidays.

A Very Merry Christmas

This Christmas I had the most family home for the holidays than we've had in at least 10 years!  It truly felt magical.  Growing up, we'd always get together at my Grandma's house and this Christmas brought back all those fond memories and feelings.  It was a wonderful week of visits with 4 of my 5 siblings.  I had Katie, Jason, Evan, my mom & my dad over for Christmas Eve.

 Jason and my mom came over for Christmas breakfast and opening presents.  We played with our new toys and games and then headed to Mom's house for dinner, presents, and games with Amber's family.

Visits from Santa & Jingles the Elf

I love seeing the magic & excitement that Santa & Jingles bring each year!  Tucker was especially cute this year as I caught him several times just staring at the Christmas tree or at Jingles.  The kids visited Santa at our church party.  Normally, they aren't that interested in him because they are sure he is a fake, but this one called them each by name so they were pretty sure he was the real one!

Tommy's Birthday Weekend

Tommy turned 10! I made him his favorite breakfast of lemon muffins and Jingles decorated all of his dinosaurs for him.  He had one of his best friends, Charlie, over after school and we went to Applebee's with Grandma & Grandpa Van Sickle, and Aunt Aunt Amber's family.  After Applebee's we came to our house for cake, ice cream, and more play time.  Then, the next morning we went to the cabin to play in the snow.  Everyone had a great time!

Tommy at 10: Tommy is very competitive and always trying to do his best.   He has a big heart and is very thoughtful of others.  He loves to play Pokemon cards, Minecraft, & Chess.  He is very much a daddy's boy.  Vic is often the only one that can console him when he is upset.  Tommy is very responsible and gets up every morning at 6 to do his chores and practice the piano.  He loves being on the swim team and running.

The Nutcracker Ballet

I LOVED growing up and being in the Nutcracker Ballet every year so I couldn't wait to put all 3 kids in the ballet this year.  Whitney was a princess and little bonbon/mademoiselle and Tommy and Tucker were party boys.  Whitney's favorite costume was her yellow one and Tommy & Tucker did it for the ice cream bribes I promised them!  They ended up liking it in the end though.  Tommy even got one of his friends from school to do it with him.  Unfortunately, I did not like how the owner handled several different situations so this was our first and last year at this studio.

 Vic and I were so happy to have such a supportive crowd for our kiddos!