My parents joined us for Christmas Eve mass and dinner afterward.
Note to self for next year – arriving 30 minutes before mass starts is not advised if 8 people would like to sit in the same pew. Thankfully, we were able to find 8 folding chair spots with unobstructed views. The church was packed – which is an awesome thing! So happy to see joy and excitement in people – especially in the faces of the little ones.
Another Pinterest idea (from Frugal Fun 4 Boys) brought to life. Jake thought it would be fun to paint the catapult boards, so he sprayed the girls’ pink and the boys’ green. The kids stuck down grip tape so their shoes wouldn’t slide off when they stomped on the boards. (Brilliant ideas by their dad, if I may say so myself!) They all had a lot of fun figuring out where to place the fulcrum to get the best ball launch!
I originally pinned the idea to let the kids use the catapults as water balloon launchers, but tonight was a bit cool too get wet. They gladly settled for launching wiffle balls and playground balls. Still tons of fun!
My SIL won the office ticket lottery for today’s Twins game. She brought my FIL, Jake and me. Best seats I have ever had at a sporting event! (Complete with a too-close-for-comfort foul ball hit by the catcher, Suzuki.)
At the end of inning 6, we switched spots with Jake’s cousin & family (they were there to celebrate a birthday :)) Pretty sure they enjoyed the seats as much as we did. (The birthday boy even got a souviner game ball!) The field looks so different when you’re that close to the action.
Christmas at my parents’ house was lovely…tasty food, fun with family, laughter and surprises…
…until about 8:30, when we discovered that our dog, Cooper, was not feeling well. We quickly discovered that he had found a stash of chocolate somewhere in the house…enough to fill this tin:
After speaking with the after-hours emergency vet, we decided that we needed to bring him in. Since we had only driven one car to my parents’ house, my dad offered to take Cooper and me to the vet so Jake and the kids could stay and finish desert.
I’ll spare the details, but suffice it to say, we left two hours later with a dog with an empty stomach who, though he was shaking due to the caffeine in the chocolate, was going to be ok. Christmas 2014…one for the memory books!
We spent Christmas morning & afternoon at home. It was so nice to start the day at a relaxing pace.
We attended our first Christmas Eve mass at our new parish this evening. (We made the change back in July and have gradually been experiencing several “firsts.”) My parents joined us again this year. We have been able to attend mass with them on Christmas Eve for at least the last 3 years. It’s a tradition I hope we’re able to continue.
After mass, we attempted to get group shots of everyone in their Christmas attire. We gave it our best shot!
12 years
To celebrate, we went to the Gopher homecoming game.
In all of the years we were at the U, the Gophers never won a homecoming game. This year, our anniversary present ended up being a big, exciting WIN!
Many moons ago, (enough to total 40 years,) two twenty-somethings started their life together as husband and wife. Together, they made a wonderful, loving home in which they raised their two children.
Today, 40 years later, their family has grow five-fold.
Mom & Dad – today we celebrate the commitment you made to one another back on September 7, 1974, and have lived out every day since then. Thank you for saying “I Do!”
We love you!
The Littles got up filled with excitement this morning! They went downstairs and quickly found their stockings filled with an assortment of stocking stuffers and new pj’s. Once Jake and I came downstairs they started handing out gifts – finding the ones they picked out for me and begging me to open them. My heart melted. They didn’t want to open THEIR gifts, they wanted me to open mine. (I told them I was excited to see what they picked out for me, but did convince them to open some of their gifts first.) When I finally opened my presents, I found that once again, they each picked out something that was extremely thoughtful. Little #1 knows I love elephants, so he chose an elephant calendar for my office wall. Little #2 overheard that my hand mixer had seen better days, so he selected an amazing replacement one for me. (I opened his present a day early because (1) he couldn’t contain his excitement and (2) he wanted me to use it for mixing up the batter for the cookies we made on Christmas Eve morning. Little #3 apparently made a bee-line for the nail polish at Target when she went shopping with her dad and selected two nail polishes. (She’s big in to having me paint her nails and then wants to paint mine.) Little #4’s gift was a set of four mini-spatulas, which I have been secretly hoping would show up in my kitchen. Four wonderful, thoughtful presents from my four Littles.
The gifts the Littles received were theme based this year. I had heard about the idea of giving kids something they need, something they want, something to read, and we added giving them something to share among the four of them. I wrapped each theme in similar paper and the kids took turns opening their themed gift. I thought it worked quite well and would like to use the same idea next year.
After quiet/naptime, we loaded up the truck and headed for Grandma and Grandpa’s house. Everyone was home for the afternoon/evening. We had dinner as a family and then took a few group photos before opening presents.
It started with two:
Two became seven:
Add six more:
And it gets crazy!
The kids of course, thoroughly enjoyed opening their gifts. Little #4 was delighted to play with the paper and boxes.
Today was the start of our Christmas celebrations. My parents went to Christmas Eve mass with us and then came over to the house for dinner. They left just before we put he Shecklets to bed so the house could get prepped for Christmas morning.
