Christmas Jar

 Tayden was sick the week before Christmas, so our Christmas Jar had to wait. Today we cashed in the jar and did some good in the community. With the money we saved over the year, we bought food for the Idaho Falls Community Food Basket. It's a great opportunity to show the boys that they can have an impact on our community. As small as it may be, it helps someone. And that's what it's all about. 

Reading with Sully

Kyle was reading with Sully while I was sorting laundry. I left the room for a quick minute and came back to find them both buried in the warm laundry. And I decided, it could wait to be sorted, and let them stay a little longer. 

 

Christmas at Home

 After doing our Christmas parties with our extended families, it was time for Christmas at home. Christmas fell on a Sunday this year, which is always my favorite. We chose to open gifts after our Sunday services, and the kids did great. In fact, I had to take my parents to the airport (they were headed to Texas) after church and didn't get home until about 1:00. They were so patient waiting and I was so proud of them for putting Christ first on Christmas. If anything, I hope as a parent I can teach them to always put Christ first. 

We hit it out of the park for gifts this year. I stuck to their list and didn't get any filler or unnecessary gifts. They were all so pleased with what they got and so grateful. It was a fun and exciting afternoon with the kids. 

I am so grateful for the Christmas season. While we should always have Christ in our hearts, Christmas helps us refocus. It's a beautiful time to celebrate with friends and family and remember the greatest gift of all, the baby born long ago. 

       

Mennear Christmas

 We had a great time with the Mennears at Christmas too. As always, we played the candy bar game. Usually, Kyle wins, but this year, he wasn't so lucky. Instead of throwing a fit, he said, "That's okay. It's someone else's turn to win this year". I was so proud of him. My favorite part of the evening was playing Grandma Karlson's games. She had tons of cups on her counter and we all took turns picking them. Some had money, and some had toys and candy. She told us to be careful of the raw egg because whoever drew the egg had to smash it on their head. We were all so nervous to get the egg. It was down to me and my dad with only two cups left. I just knew I was going to draw the egg. Sure enough, my dad picked his cup and it had candy. Which meant I was left with the egg. I picked up the cup, and our fell...some toys balls. There never was an egg. We all laughed and laughed. It was a lot of fun. 

Once again, we were spoiled and had a great time. I love being close to family during the holidays. 

 

Packard Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas this year with the Packards. We did crafts, played games, ate great food, and opened gifts. My favorite part of the night was playing, "Left, Center, Right" with Grandma Great and watching her win. She was having so much fun. She was goofing around with the boys and playing with them. It was awesome to see her happy. 

We were spoiled with gifts and had so much fun with our family. The boys love spending time with their cousins and grandparents and I feel so blessed to be close to family.