Christmas Eve

We said good-bye to Twinkle for another year. Matt's mom gave us Twinkle the year before she passed away, before Elf on the Shelf was a big craze. Twinkle knows the true meaning of the season, celebrating the birth of Jesus.

Twas the Night Before Christmas

Another month has gone, another catch up post...

We were blessed at Thanksgiving to spend time with our family.  We had turkey and dressing and all the sides at David's house with Matt's brother and his family.  My brother and his family came for the weekend, and we were able to get Mom's annual Christmas picture with the grandkids.  It's not easy to get 7 kids to look the same way, smile, and keep their eyes open at the same time.  It seems to get a little easier each year though!

We started the month of December with a Christmas party at Matt's work.  Santa and Mrs. Claus came to visit, and this is the first time that I can remember there were no tears or hesitation from the kids!

Joshua and Caleb were in the play, Aristocats, with the homeschool co-op.  Joshua was Thomas O'Malley, and Caleb was Toulouse.  I am always so impressed with how much work the kids accomplish in just one semester getting ready for their plays.  There was singing, dancing, and acting, and the kids seem to enjoy it all so much!

Joshua and the alley cats

Caleb and the Aristocats

Thomas and Anna just being happy.

My sweet Caleb turned 10 this year.  He has a smile that can light up a room.  He loves computers and Legos.  He is a hugger and a snuggler.  He knows how to love big!

Joshua used his money to buy Caleb a present and made a card for him.

Thomas and Anna got spoiled at preschool by several of the high school interns.  They came home on the last day of school and had to open all the gifts they had been given.  The high schoolers love working with the preschoolers.

My annual gingerbread house turned out to be a mess this year.  I just didn't have the patience to wait for the frosting to set up for the construction of the house.  In the meantime, Thomas was sucking frosting from the tube, and Anna was poking candy in her mouth as fast as possible.  After the house collapsed a couple of times, I told the kids that I was done this year.  They took turns eating the house.  Oh well, I tried.  Next year, pre-built house!

Matt managed to surprise with an airplane ride to see the big lights display at Lake Lanier.  He works with a friend who owns the plane.  They were talking about flying, and he invited Matt to bring us for a flight.  We tried to take Luke also, but when he saw the plane, he wouldn't even get out of the van.  Luckily, Matt was able to take him back to Mom's house where Thomas and Anna were hanging out.  It was a four seater, so Caleb sat on my lap during the flight.  We had headsets with microphones, so we were able to converse during the flight.  Unfortunately, none of my pictures turned out well of the lights.  We flew over Helen also before we landed again at the local airport.  The night was clear, and the take-off and landing were perfect.

I should be getting ready for tomorrow.  Lots of cooking and gift wrapping to be done!  Merry Christmas to all!