'Twas The Night Before Christmas

Ahh, Christmas Eve. That magical evening of childhood innocence, dancing sugar plums, homecooked deliciousness...


Okay time for a reality check...instead of visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads, the kids went bonkers from excitement and cookie overload. But I guess that's what Christmas is all about?


Dean chose to eat the whipped cream off of his cookie by dipping a Christmas card into the cream and licking it off. I figured...he wasn't crying...so have at it kid.


Time for the obligatory pose around the Christmas tree shot...we had 1 out of 4 kids cooperating (thanks Cha!)


Then we worked our way up to 2 out of 4 kids cooperating - a Christmas miracle.


The church service was beautiful...luminaries lined all of the walkways and we all lit candles and sang Silent Night at the end. Cole was particulary impressed that the minister asked us to light the chalice at the start of the service...a 4 year old's version of his 15 minutes of fame.



After the service everyone brought something sweet to eat...Dean decided to skip the cookies and cake and went right for the shoe.


Another Christmas miracle...when we got home the boys asked to go to bed. Huh?!? So we willingly obliged and went to our neighbors for drinks.

After settling into their kitchen stools with wine glass firmly planted in hand, I realized what Christmas means to me (besides the alcohol). Sitting with your friends and laughing about our crazy life. Making the kid's favorite foods and hearing them say thank you. Seeing their excitement about Santa coming to town. Hearing hundreds of people at church sing together by candlelight.

When you strip away the chaos it really was a fantastic day. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Boo To The Flu

At the beginning of the summer we started going to a new church. It's been a great experience for the family and we really like the modern twists of the congregation (i.e. the sermons are all available on podcast and the minister likes to use 80's movie references in his sermons.)

This weekend we volunteered with a few other families at The Clinic in Phoenixville to disinfect from top to bottom as they prepare for flu season.

I brought Ryan and Cole, and was so proud of them for rolling up their sleeves and helping. I think they may have just been excited for the opportunity to wear rubber gloves, but they also asked a lot of smart questions like, "Why do people have to come here instead of a regular doctor's office?"

When we left Cole gave a hug to the Director of the Clinic and said, "I hope everyone feels better soon!" My little charmer strikes again.

Have Mercy

I was telling a story about Cole today and the people I was talking to were cracking up. It never really struck me as out of the ordinary that he likes to pretend he's a cat named Princess and play fetch with a Mickey Mouse PEZ dispenser, but I guess it is sort of odd.

This kids is a character, to say the least.

For the record, he had a "boo-boo" on his middle finger and was showing it to me all day on Sunday. This included the church service when he was in the front row with said boo-boo finger sticking straight up in the air. Lord, have mercy.

2010 Christmas

Phew.

In what seemed like a whirlwind of gift wrap and cookies, the Christmas season came and went. The kids had a great time and the grown-ups are pooped. Here are a few highlights...

Ry has been begging us to join our Fellowship's intergenerational choir. He had his first performance at the Christmas Eve service and held his own with the old pros.

After a feast at the house, our neighbors had us over for dessert and Cole indulged. A lot.

Christmas morning was pretty normal. Muffins, Crispy Brunch, presents, and a mini trampoline. Santa did mess up with the trumpet...let's just say he probably didn't realize how loud it was when he shoved it down the chimney we don't have. Of course all of the boys love it so I'm now in a continual trumpet daze.

Overall I'll give this holiday season two thumbs up. Not to sound like a broken record, but the wine helped. Also the smiles on my children's faces. And the wine.

Happy holidays!!