It's Christmas!

Huh? Christmas was last month? Where does the time go? Christmas was lovely. I wanted desperately to buy Christmas pjs for us all this year, but I couldn't find anything that I even remotely liked. I had 8 yards of fabric from last year that I never used, so I pulled it out and made us some quick pjs pants. The kids' pants all turned out pretty good. The adult pjs had issues. Whatever. Slap a smile on your face and it's all good, right? I used this tutorial for the pj pants this year. It was super easy, but I have yet to find a decent method for making adult pj pants.

Christmas Eve we have a pajama party over at my parents' home. My dad had set up the train that he got for Christmas in 1957. The kids had a blast playing with it. It's amazing that it is in such great shape and runs well too. My mom made an amazing prime rib for dinner. I still think about it often it was so good. My iron must be low...dreaming about red meat! The kids played a left/right game with this story where we passed gifts around in a circle. Poor Kent was so confused and just wanted to open a present. After the game we watched the video that came with the book Christmas from Heaven. I would recommend the book, but now it's selling for $233! I certainly didn't pay that much!!

Then the gifts poured! It was certainly a football Christmas for Kent. Check out how excited he is for a chocolate football. Touchdown!! Clark loved his Kid Tough binoculars. I love the Kid Tough stuff. It really is tough.

A few more favorites...

We came home and the boys went right to bed. They did say they were going to stay up all night and listen for Santa. We told them that Santa wouldn't stop if they were awake. They weren't willing to risk it!

Santa came! Clark got a bean bag chair, diamond sword and pick axe, Lego Minecraft The Nether, Minecraft plush Creeper and Enderman, and some Minecraft guys. Kent got a bean bag chair, iron sword and pick axe, Bears football jersey and helmet, Minecraft plush Creeper and Enderman, and Bears Teammates. Kara got a Disney Princess Songs Palace. All of the kids got a Lionel Scout electric train set too. I can't wait to set that up each year!!

Look at me - I'm going to shoot my eye out! Opening gifts was a lot of fun. I just love seeing their faces get so excited about things. The best is when they actually stop to put it on, open it up, try it out. Then you know you picked out the perfect gift. Clark was very efficient at opening gifts. He stopped a few times to check things out, but knew that the ultimate purpose was to open things up as fast as he could and then check them out. Kent was v.e.r.y.s.l.o.w. at opening gifts. He wanted to open everything. Total overload. I felt bad rushing him at the end, but we had a busy day and had to move on!

Amidst the wreckage

Our next stop is over to Jason's parents house. We have a nice breakfast while we're there and then all migrate to the front room for gifts. Jason claimed his spot on his "sick chair."  I was handing out gifts most of the time, so there aren't many pictures from this presentfest, but it was fun! Cam made Wendy a beautiful shelf for the family room and he also got her wedding ring fixed. She was in tears! Such a fun morning!

We headed back home to get the sweet potato casserole in the oven and to meet my mom and dad. They came over with another one of Kent's gifts that was too big for Christmas Eve. They made him some PVC uprights for the backyard! I can't wait to try them out when it warms up a bit! They also brought over Jason's Thundercats Lair. Seriously. I could tell he was pretty bummed on Christmas Eve when he didn't get the Lair. He KNEW that my mom was going to get it for him, but he didn't open it up. He was okay with it and decided that he would just buy it with his Christmas cash. My mom likes to make him sweat I think, so she waited until Christmas Day to bring it over. He was very happy!! Like a kid on Christmas?! Clark also took a few minutes to try out his snowboard from Jason. He's since tried it on a lot of snow and loves it!

Our final Christmas stop is by Jason's Gram's house. We went and a lovely dinner and gifts. The boys were playing after dinner near the pool table. They weren't really being rough or anything. Kent bumped into the pool table and started crying. Jason went over slowly to see what was the matter. He looked kind of shocked and took him to the bathroom. I figured it was just a bloody lip which is pretty common with these boys. A few minutes later I went to the bathroom to check on him and there was blood everywhere! His gums were all black and blue and then I wiggled his tooth. It was loose! I was hoping it would just be kind of loose, but by the time we were done with presents it had fallen out. He was a trooper through the whole thing. I was probably more of a wreck than he was. My little hillbilly!

After a few phone calls to dentist friends, we realized there was nothing we could do. We took him to the dentist the following morning and they said his remaining teeth looked fine and that there was no damage. He was kind of excited to get the first visit to the tooth fairy in our house. She even brought $5 since it was knocked out! I guess we have to get used to this one tooth wonder!

Merry Christmas - a month later!!

Holiday Highlights

I thought I might take the rest of our pre-Christmas photos and compile them into holiday highlights reel instead of them each being their own post.

The Christmas Lights Polar Express

This was so much fun! When Clark and Dad got home (and Kara was fed) we gave each of the boys a ticket for the Christmas Lights Polar Express. I punched them with my favorite teeny paper punch just like in the movie. We made a stop at McDonald's for drive thru dinner and set out for Elburn, IL. Seriously, it seemed as far as it would have to go to the North Pole. 

We watched a few episodes of The Great Christmas Light Fight and saw the Larsen's house on the show. They won the prize for the night and we knew we had to go see it. In the long drive, we had enough time to eat dinner, read a book, fall asleep...you name it. The lights did not disappoint. I was hoping we would have been able to see more or do more, but Kent kept saying that he had to go to the bathroom. We don't mess around when he says he has to go to the bathroom. We're hoping his bladder control gets a little better for next year's show! After the lights we of course had to have some hot chocolate while listening to the song from the movie. That was Clark's idea. He's so funny!

Clark's Class Christmas Party

Clark's teacher is so nice to invite all of us to school events. Kent, Kara and I all went to Clark's Christmas party to have cookies and take pictures by the fireplace. I'm so glad he loves his class. Kent loved hanging out at his school too. He found these little blue papers that you could see through and was checking out how they made the everything look. Clark even made us a Christmas card - love the spelling on the card. I used to sign my name "Merry" on Christmas cards, but I think his version of "Mary Christmas" works too!

Our Christmas Tree

I didn't hate our Christmas tree this year as much as last year. It looks so sad though. It's no longer pre-lit and the extra lights that we put on this year just weren't enough as you can see on the bottom rung. But we're holding out to buy a new one after Kara goes through her toddler years. I'm just hoping this tree is going to make it!

Kara's Christmas Dress

I was so glad that I was able to make Kara's Christmas dress this year. With the way things were going, I thought I was going to have to buy one. That wouldn't have been a terrible thing. But I just really wanted to make one for her. I even found this shop that sells cute dress patterns for infants. I made the Ella Dress. I figure the boys just have to deal with having a silly picture here. This one showed off Kara's dress the best.

A Season of Excess

I have seriously felt the excess this season. It's everywhere. Smeared all over Kent's face in the form of cake batter and on Clark's plate for Sunday lunches. His new favorite sandwich...the triple decker. I am so grateful for a January of Simplicity after the December of Excess.

The Loyal Order of the Water Buffaloes Christmas Party

I should have declined the work of putting together a Christmas party for Jason's friends, but I always love a good party. And to be fair...Jason did most of the work despite having to work crazy long hours too. Dave was even kind enough to wear the shirt I made the group for their first Christmas party 3 or 4 years ago. I think he's the only one that still fits in his shirt!

Next up...Christmas!

Christmas Music Program

Clark was so excited about his school Christmas music program. He loves to perform. He told me about it at the beginning of December. Then he would randomly say things like, "I bet you're really excited for the 16th." There were a few times when I had no idea what was happening on the 16th. Then he would respond with exasperation, "my music program." I was really excited to see him sing though. I love seeing him do so many things!

Afterwards we went out to Oberweis for some awesome ice cream!

First up...Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

And Jolly Old St. Nicholas

Old St. Nick

We celebrated St. Nick's Day on Dec. 15th this year. We had to do a little rearranging of the schedule because the stockings weren't finished. I planned to make the entire family new stockings this year with my awesome new embroidery machine. I was going to finish them all by 12/8. I was able to finish Clark and Kent's stockings by 12/15. Old St. Nick didn't mind. He filled them up just the same.

Fun Christmas glasses!

I really love the way the stockings turned out. I'm hoping to write a complete tutorial this year. I'm going to finish the rest of the stocking's this month. Now I'm putting a St. Nick's Day 2014 deadline on Jason for getting the mantle/fireplace finished. Woo!

The Man in Red

We went to Bass Pro Shops to visit Santa. I swear it's the best place to visit him. We thought we were smart going on a Thursday, but we still had to wait an hour. It's a good thing we love a lot of things at Bass Pro Shops! The kids were all very excited to see Santa. They were all happy and sort of smiling (Kara!). She was so enthralled by the white puff ball on Santa's hat. It took a lot of cajoling to get her to look our way.

Prior to this visit, Clark was going to ask for Minecraft stuff and Kent wanted big football players and big cars and little football players and little cars. He was very specific and had to say each of them individually. Kara was hoping for a princess castle. When they got to Santa to tell him what they wanted, Clark went specific and asked for the Minecraft Lego set The Nether. Then Kent said he wanted Minecraft stuff too. What?! Santa's elves have a hard time when kids change their minds last minute, especially since Santa and the elves know so well that the kid still wants big football players and big cars and little football players and little cars. It all worked out in the end though!

I love all of the things that the kids can do at Bass Pro while they are waiting for their Santa visit. More than that, I love that I get to wait in line where it's quiet and uneventful. It's such a nice little break for me!

For previous Santa visits, click here: 2012, 2011, 2007

#miracleon75thst

My mom and I were in charge of decorations for the Ward Christmas Party this year. Everything looked really festive. Our favorite part was the photo booth. Clark had such a fun time making the props with us.

Some favorite photo booth shots...love Kent's "American Gothic" pose in the first one.

The kids also sang Christmas songs during the program. Here for your viewing pleasure...

First up, Clark singing.

Next is Kent not singing.

Elf-Capades

Are you ready for a series of Christmas related posts? We'll start with Sam, our elf. The kids absolutely LOVED finding Sam this year. He was all over trying to trick them. Clark would get so bummed when he didn't have time to find Sam before school. Then he would look for him first thing when he got home. Clark often told me that he knew Sam wasn't real and came from a box. I'm not sure he was totally convinced either way. Love the magic of Christmas!

Some of our favorite things that Sam did...on the first he always brings our book advent which we love. He defeated Skeletor with He-Man's help. He was captured by Beast Man and put in Lego jail. Then he had to hang out on the Christmas tree for 2 days to get his magic back. He played hockey on our old mirror with his new hockey jersey. Kent loved that day. He had me make him his own candy cane hockey stick wrapped with electrical tape so that he could play against Sam. Kara had a blast watching him! Sam wrote a thank you note saying that he loved his jersey and that he plays on the North Polar Bears elf hockey team.

Sam also took Godzilla for a ride by dangling a "carrot" flavored tootsie roll in front of him. The boys thought he was fishing. He helped St. Nick with the stockings and showed us his Spiderman moves. He enjoyed the real reason for the season. He made a copy of himself, signed up for Illinois' concealed carry (not good), studied some scriptures and even made his own photo booth props!

It was sad to see Sam go, but we'll see him again next year!

Wilde Family Gingerbread Construction Company

Our first year doing Gingerbread houses! Let me tell you this won't be the last. Except next year I am going to be buying one for me too. I bought the premade houses at Costco this year so we could just get right to the decorating. I'm not sure if I'll ever brave the gingerbread and icing myself. This was so easy!

And we quickly learned how yummy it is to just eat the icing. Kent kept asking me if it was okay to put candy, frosting, fondant, etc. in his mouth. He couldn't wrap his head around the awesome idea that everything could be eaten! Definitely his kind of craft!

Our finished houses. Clark left a side of his house plain, so I quickly asked him if I could decorate that side. It was so fun to play with candy and frosting. I want to do my own next time!

For some other gingerbread house fun check out these fun sites:
The Gingerbread Construction Company
The World's Largest Gingerbread House

The Most Powerful Movie in the Universe

The boys relaxing while watching their favorite Christmas show, He-Man and She-Ra Christmas Special. 

Jason stayed awake this year which was pretty amazing! He usually falls asleep and I'm sitting there watching Skeletor thinking to myself, "why on earth am I the only one watching this?"

Kent really loved the movie and afterwards was in an "everything He-Man" mode which made Jason very happy.

Christmas Party at Luigi's

Each year Jason's work puts on a Christmas party at a pizza place/arcade. The food isn't awesome, but the kids absolutely LOVE going to the party. They love laser tag and the arcade and then picking out fun prizes with their tickets. It almost seems like a big family party when we go since Jason works with his dad and one of his brothers. Such a fun time!

Paint Stick Snowmen

I originally thought this was way too early to be making a snowman craft, but since we've already had our first snowfall I say bring it let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! This was a super easy craft that didn't take that much time and was pretty easy for the kids with a little bit of help from the grown ups. We actually did these for our Super Saturday at church and my mom had some sticks left over so the kids got to make some.

Supplies:

Paint sticks

White paint

buttons

black foam (free hand cut to a hat shape)

brown pipe cleaners (make snowman arms)

googly eyes

scrap piece of fabric

foam brush

hot glue and gun

Step 1: Paint the paint stick white and allow to dry (check out the concentration on these two!)

Step 2: The picture clearly shows me using tacky glue which did work, but I think hot glue would have been quicker and it works better for the pipe cleaners on the back. So...

Attach the hat, eyes and buttons to the front of the snowman.

Step 3: Attach the pipe cleaner arms to the back using hot glue. The tacky glue didn't work at all! The best part about crafting with boys is that you just never know what you're going to get. Kind of like that box of chocolates...! I would never have made a 4 eyed snowman like Clark or put the snowman's hat on upside down like Kent did. It's always fun to see how they interpret things!

They both loved their snowmen so much! We added a pipe cleaner hanger to the back and they are proudly on display in their bedroom. I can't help but smile when I see them!

Hershey Sweet Lights

Hershey does like to celebrate Christmas. They also have a huge Christmas light display called the Hershey Sweet Lights. I liked it since the whole thing was in your car with the heat on! We didn't have to feel a lick of cold. Each car pays admission and then slowly meanders through the two miles and almost 600 illuminated displays. Here are a few highlights...

They have a contest for the local elementary kids to design some displays. The winning displays are created and then put out for all to enjoy. Santa playing hockey was our favorite.