Christmas Memories

Happy Anniversary to me. I have officially been a blogger for a year now! Thanks, Amy, for convincing us to get on board. I am glad we have all of these family memories to look back on. Christmas at our house was perfect, but way too short. I feel like we just barely got out the decorations and they are all back in their boxes and under the stairs again. I dread the morning when the school routine will start again. It has been heaven to have everyone home and together for the past little while. But, let me back up. Christmas Eve morning the kids woke up and were HYPER! We were waiting for Zac to come out of the bathroom so we could start breakfast. He was taking forever. When he came out of the bathroom like this, we knew why:

It is a little hard to tell in this picture, but his pants are on his head and his shirt is on his legs. It did take him a while to figure out how to carry out his brilliant idea, thus the delay in breakfast. We were very grateful for our Christmas Eve traditions that helped to focus some of that "creative" energy. We went with the Smiths and Grandma Puckett to our annual matinee. This year's feature was Bolt. The kids enjoyed it, although I thought parts of the plot were a little complicated for them. We will have to rent it when it hits DVD so that Joseph can finish watching it. The puppy and kitty only kept Brook occupied for so long and they spent the last half of the movie in the foyer. Thanks, Dad. Then we were off for a yummy dinner and Brick Oven and back to Carol's house for the Nativity. Sariah was thrilled to play Mary again. Zac got to be the "gold wiseman" as per his request and Ally was the angel. Brook was uncooperative in being assigned a part, but was a very cute audience member. Emily and Chris joined us for dinner and the nativity. Then they even came home with us to spend the night! We loved it!

By the time we got home, the kids were pretty tired (which was all part of the plan) and that is why Brook did not want to be in the Christmas Eve Pajama picture. She got Dora jammies that she was very excited about. We put out some cookies and milk for Santa, some carrots for the reindeer and even left an extra cookie for Santa to take home to Mrs. Claus. (I am sure she appreciated that.)
Then we tucked them into bed so visions of sugar plums could dance in their heads. Ally wanted to sleep downstairs with Zac and Sariah. When Em and Chris decided to join us, it turned into a full slumber party. They actually slept pretty well and were not up too early. Christmas morning was a whirlwind. I did not take too many pictures, but snapped a few keepers.
All the kids got BandAids in their stockings. It was a good thing, because we had many "injuries" that morning, including this one on Ally's forehead.
Chris and Emily scored some sweet gifts. Thanks again for sharing your Christmas with us.
Sariah got lots of good princess loot and a couple of Wiggles things as well.
Zac has fallen in love with the NFL lately, so Santa scored big with a set of mini helmets, complete with a chart to track team standings in the playoffs. Before we left for Grandma's house, he had his Dad online looking up the standings.
Ally loved the bear she got from Brooklyn. She was also excited about her soccer ball and dishes from Grandma.
Brook was not into opening presents like I thought she would be, but the babies waiting for her on the couch were just what she wanted. She carried them around all morning. We spent the rest of the day visiting with family. We gave my parents a webcam which we were able to try out. Em and Chris were with us and the rest of the family were at mom and dad's so between the two houses, we were all able to be together. (I love technology.) We got to see Marc and Liz and Nicole at the Ansons' house and got to talk to David and Amy on the phone. It was a great day. I really can't wait for Christmas to come again, and I really might start shopping in July:-).

A Flurry of Posts

Finally -- the cards have been mailed, the goodies delivered, the presents bought (and almost all wrapped), the school parties are over, the stockings are hung -- and I have a minute to myself to catch up on the blog. It is an amazing time of year. I hope I have slowed down enough to soak it in. Tonight for family night Zac wanted to act out the nativity. It was fun even though Brook (the cutest angel you have ever seen) kept taking the baby Jesus out of the manger. When we were done, we asked the kids why the Chritsmas story is so important. We asked them what would have happened if Christ had not come to the earth. (Zac answered that there would be more robbers and, you know, he is probably right.) I really thought about it too and realized again how grateful I am that He did come to earth. It was a beautiful moment as we talked about our need for the Atonement and the precious gift of repentance. No wonder the multitude of heavenly hosts sang for joy. Have a Merry Christmas as you too rejoice in the life of our Savior.

Brook's Bathtub

Brook has figured out how to open the lid and dump the toys out of this tote. She likes to push it into the living room and climb into it. Yesterday she climbed in and said, "bath -- splash, splash." She was very pleased with herself. Tonight she decided to read in the bath. We love seeing her imagination begin to emerge.

Icing on the Cake!

Joseph technically finished his Master's Degree in August. On December 12th we drove up to Logan so he could get "hooded" and make his walk across the stage. It was a fantastic day. There he is, the handsome one in the crowd. (I am not sure what I did to this picture, but it was a great shot.)
We took the two little girls with us. Zac and Sariah did not want to miss school, especially since it was Polar Express day in Kindergarten. Some good friends took care of the kids after school. The ceremony was short and sweet and definitely worth the drive. The girls were wonderful. When the string quartet began playing, Ally piped up, "Mom, the orchestra is playing." I did not even know she knew that word.
A glimpse of the future. (A future that is coming way too fast.)
Brook is proud of her Daddy and so are we. He worked hard and sacrificed time and sleep. It is a great feeling to know that it is done.
Grandpa Anson came up with us, too. Thanks, Dad, for making the trip and for always supporting us.

It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas

The day after Thanksgiving the kids were chomping at the bit to get the Christmas stuff out. They had a great time "decorating" the tree. We had to more evenly distribute the ornaments later. They got the most excited about getting out the singing snowman and the advent calendar that Grandma Anson made. The highlight of each day is choosing a toy to add to Santa's Workshop. Only three more to go.
Sariah was thrilled with her job of organizing the Christmas CD's. We added some fun ones to our collection this year. The Christmas CD in the van gets a lot of play time, especially track 1 (Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer) and track 4 (You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch -- One night Sariah said she was going to sing the scary part. That would be the "dum-da-dum" intro. It was pretty funny).
And now it feels like Christmas. In the last week we have finally gotten some real snow. Today it snowed almost all day. A few days ago we bundled Brook up and let her go for it. She was not too sure about touching the snow but she did run around yelling, "No (Snow)!" Since then when she sees the snow she says, "No, hat, gloves, hands." It is fun that she can remember things she has done and tell us about them. I think it is safe to say that we will have a White Christmas.

Lying Down on the Job

We were out raking leaves one day when we looked around for Zac and found him like this. What a character.
The kids actually turned out to be pretty good "leaf helpers" and probably did deserve a break.

Happy Birthday, Zac!

Zac has been six now for over a month. We had a great day celebrating his birthday on November 15th. (Yes, I am hopelessly behind.) He wanted a Hot Wheels party, complete with a racetrack cake -- which was fun and fairly easy to make (thanks Family Fun).
We started the day by inviting some friends to the "Anson Speedway." We had several races including a backward race, "potato sack" race and the grand finale. For the finale, racers made a pit stop during each lap. On lap one they had to gas up (down a cup of Kool Aid); during lap two they had their winshield (face) washed; and lap three required a tire change (they finished the race in a pair of Joseph's shoes). Then we went inside to eat cupcakes, open presents and play. Each boy left with a treat bag and a Hot Wheel of his own. I think it was a success.
Later, the family came for a family party. Zac loved all his gifts, but seemed especially excited about the baseball guys from Grandma Walker. Joseph was pretty excited, too. They did not waste much time setting it up. Since then, we have had many "baseball games" in the living room. Sometimes the kids line up stuffed animals and other action figures along the sidelines to be the spectators. I think one of Zac's favorite parts is changing the scoreboard. He aslo really enjoyed the Backyard Baseball game from Aunt Laura. He is now very much into NFL football.
Happy Birthday, Zac. We hope all of your wishes come true. You make us laugh every day and we look forward to another year of great memories.