Christmas

We had such a nice relaxing Christmas this year.  During the weeks leading up to Christmas, we enjoyed several service traditions which is our favorite part of the month.  On Christmas Eve we went to church and had some family time with a nice dinner. 

I really love being in our own home and taking it slow on Christmas day.

We took our time with stockings, had breakfast, and cleaned up before moving onto presents.

Laurel was enthusiastic about opening presents.  We had to watch her so that she didn't open anyone else's gifts.

Jim had a full beard for a while!  (This is the only picture I have of it.)

After opening gifts, we spent a long time playing games and playing with new gifts.

Brig passed out.

Eventually, some of us had naps, and later on we watched a movie, had treats, and had a nice dinner.

December

Annie solved this Rubik's cube in 2 1/2 minutes!

I was playing with photo editing one day...

Little miss has style.

Christmas Build Up

We get pretty excited about Christmas around here, so we always set up our tree on Thanksgiving.

Instead of decorating it right away, we only put on the lights and ribbons.  Then the kids can put an ornament on every time they do an act of service.  They did the ornaments 100% by themselves this year.

For my Christmas and Anniversary gift, Jim had my rings resized and repaired!  I hadn't been able to wear them for a year because they were too tight.  When the sizing was finished in early December, I couldn't wait to wear them, so Jim let me have my gift early.  It feels so good to have my rings back!

We hosted our annual Christmas party again this year.  It's crazy how many people we can cram into our living room!

Escaping from the crowded living room.  Ha ha!

Logan helped me make lots of safe treats for Christmas.

I labeled gifts with a secret code again this year.  The kids couldn't wait to crack it.  I really thought I was clever this time, but Alex figured it out in just a couple of minutes!

Annie and I had fun Christmas shopping.

Some friends and I took our girls to the Nutcracker ballet.  It was fantastic! 

Logan could not stand how long it was taking me to wrap presents one night.  Ha ha!  (BTW...our carpet is not filthy...this is all shadow.)

Bake Shop

To earn Christmas money this year, we hatched the idea for Logan and Annie to sell baked goods.  It was a hit!  They called it 'Logan and Annie's Bake Shop', and they offered a range of goodies from cookie dough to gluten free and paleo treats.  They learned a lot about business management, money management, accountability, and earned quite a sum.  The best part is that is was a good team effort which was great for their relationship.

November

Sweet Brig

This little girl is so much fun.

Laurel has her own style.  She usually has a skirt on so she can be 'pretty'.