Christmas was, for the most part, a whole lot of fun this year. Both boys were spoiled rotten by Santa and all of their relatives, and it was so neat to watch it all unfold through their eyes.
We had a busy month of December watching Christmas specials. We kicked the excitement up a notch -- or so I thought we would -- by attending the Festival of Lights at the zoo the week before Christmas. That turned out to be a bomb for us -- while the weather was 30 degrees and sunny during the day, the boys took late naps and we didn't get out of the house until 5:30-ish. We were stuck in traffic for at least an hour trying to park the car -- we didn't exit the van until 7 PM or later. By this time the kids were starving. I brought plenty of snacks with me, but it had gotten so cold that no one wanted to take off their mittens to eat said snacks or hold their sippy cups. Neither child cared about seeing the lights or seeing the animals. And even though we were armed with a map and zoo's iPhone app, we had trouble navigating the zoo in the dark. We had no idea where to find Santa or the merry-go-round. And Daddy? Well, he didn't wear gloves since he was manning the camera, so his fingers were frozen 10 minutes into the visit. The best thing about going was the penguin mood ring I bought for my niece, and getting back in the car to go home.
Justin had his Christmas party at school a few days later and he loved it. They had all kinds of yummy food and snacks, and every kid got to take home a treat bag. Somehow Justin snagged two of them :) He also got to go to the movies with his BFF Logan and his mommy. We saw Tangled, which is a remake of Rapunzel. The boys were reasonably well-behaved, even though Justin reported, "Mommy, I didn't like that movie very good well."
Both boys got to go Christmas shopping with Daddy. Justin got to help wrap gifts and carefully selected Buzz Lightyear paper for the presents he wrapped. He used about a half roll of tape for each package.
Christmas Eve finally arrived and Justin was thrilled, because it meant that he got to move his candy cane marker to the top of the Christmas tree countdown calendar. He and Daddy made and decorated some cookies! All of the cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents came to our house on Christmas Eve. There was a video game extravaganza going on while we waited for the ham to finish cooking. Finally, everyone went home and we dressed the boys in their Christmas PJs. We put out two cookies and some milk for Santa, and went to bed to await his arrival.
Christmas morning was one of the best I have had in years. The boys were so excited -- the living room was full of toys and gifts from Santa, and the wonder on their faces was just awesome to watch. Santa brought them a toy kitchen this year complete with play food and dishes, and they both are having a blast exploring it.
We spent Christmas afternoon and evening at Aunt Maria and Uncle Dave's house, where the wrapping paper flew and chaos reigned as 14 people opened gifts. I think both of the boys were asleep before we reached the end of the street going home.
We then traveled to northeast Ohio to visit with Daddy's side of the family. Justin and Tyler met lots of cousins they didn't realize they had and enjoyed all of the attention from their extended relatives. There was even a surprise visit from Santa himself when we saw the Smith family!
The downside to this adventure was the torturous car ride both to and from Grandma Joann's house, and the boys sharing a bedroom with Mommy while Daddy slept on a sofa bed. Sleep was hard to come by for a few days, but the family visit was fun and they weren't ready to come home when the time came. There was blessed silence for part of the way back home even though it was a 7-hour drive.
We were home by New Year's Eve, and life has mostly returned to normal. It was a whirlwind for sure, but a special time that none of us will forget anytime soon. Oh, I almost forgot! Tyler got two new teeth on his 15-month birthday (12/21). Sounds like we did pretty well.
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