Alex's Stocking

I FINALLY finished Alex's stocking!  Woohoo!  His was no where near as detailed as Logan's and Annie's, so it was less time consuming, but I really struggled with the patience to work on it.  I guess I need to make the next one when I'm not pregnant.  :)  I'm just glad I finished this one in time for Christmas. 

 

Alex is thrilled with it and doesn't like his siblings to touch it.  The neat thing about his stocking is that the drum has a music chip in it, so it plays 'Jingle Bells'. 

I also wanted pictures of all our stockings. 

Last, a picture of the tree with presents underneath. 

Christmas Kickoff Party

We had our annual Christmas party a little early this year (December 1st) because our month is going to be so full.  It was a great night!  The only thing that would have made it better is if our house were big enough to invite ALL of our friends.  (Not that I'd want a bigger house on any other day of the year...)  Anyway, four families came (making 10 adults and 15 kids) and we had an enjoyable night complete with dinner, gifts, games, and conversation.

 

For dinner we did a potluck salad bar complete with meats, nuts, veggies, fruits, etc...; I'm sure all the husbands thought this sounded pretty lame, and maybe it was for them, but I sure enjoyed it!  I thought it was a fantastic meal.  :)  After dinner we had a white elephant gift exchange.  This was a true white elephant meaning that no one was allowed to spend any money.

 

We did the gift exchange in three parts.  First the girls did theirs.  They passed their gifts around in a circle until I stopped the music.  The oldest girl (age 11) ended up with some baby toys which was pretty ironic, but she was a super good sport. 



The anticipation built for the boys as they waited for their turn.

I tried to take a picture of Lynnette with her girls when her son took a flying leap in front of the camera.  It's funny because this totally captures his personality.

The boys had their turn second.  The ages were a little less spread out here.  I kept the music going for a long time for the boys.

They passed and passed those presents...

Finally, I stopped the music and they opened their gifts.  Logan ended up with a Santa hat and he has been wearing it CONSTANTLY.  I guess he liked his gift.  :)

The adults did a slightly more complicated white elephant exchange.  We sent the little kids downstairs to run wild play.  The adult exchange involved the ability to steal gifts and the gifts were opened one at a time.  There were some amusing gifts this year and we had a fun time.  My favorite was a Michael Jackson VHS. 

After the gift exchange we had dessert and then sent the kids downstairs again.  I know the kids had a fun time running around in our big basement, but the adults possibly had a better time.  We played a simple game called 'Take Your Pick' which fostered good conversation and lots of laughter.  I think we were louder than the kids!

Thanks everyone for a fabulous night!

Ultrasound

We had our ultrasound last week!  We didn't get very good pictures, but I'm not complaining.  It's always fun to see the baby's development.  Everything looked fine and we're having a girl!  For months Annie has been emotionally hoping for a sister.  I was seriously concerned for her reaction if she was getting another brother!  I'm glad for her sake and of course I'm thrilled to have another girl.   I'm excited to use Annie's cute baby clothes again and for her to have a sister to share a room with.

 

 

Here are the few pictures we were given.  Like I said, these aren't great. 

 

This is a side profile.  The baby kept putting her hands in front of her face and she was VERY active during the whole ultrasound.

This was the first time we've had 3D imaging.  The pictures didn't scan very nicely, so it's even harder to see the baby.

This is the best picture.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

I'm getting behind again; I guess it's good I haven't taken many pictures lately because I forget what I'm behind on.  :) 

 

Anyway...

 

We decorated for Christmas the day after our enjoyable Thanksgiving.  Considering we lived in an apartment only two years ago, our Christmas decorations aren't very extensive and so they are easy to put out.

 

I love real trees, but this year am really grateful that we have a fake one.  The kids were excited to help put the tree together.  They organized the branches and brought them to me to spread out as Jim was ready for them.

We turned on some Christmas music, wrapped the lights, and then commenced decorating.  I have to admit, it's nice that my family wants to decorate the tree.  I enjoyed just handing them the decorations and watching.  :)  Everything about Christmas is so exciting for these kids.  I love it.

Annie has so much personality and this picture captured it so well.  That's my funny girl!

Owing to their height, we had a heavy concentration of decorations on the bottom.

Alex focused on just a couple of branches.  As ornaments have come off (AKA been played with) he's been putting them back on in the same spot, so it's getting even more concentrated.  :)

Ta da!

Our month of Christmas is underway!  We had presents ready before Thanksgiving, so we just get to enjoy this time.  We're looking forward to doing our favorite traditions and seeing family!