Well, Christmas was wonderful again this year. We were a little sad that we weren' t going to be seeing family around the holiday but really it still turned out to be a great holiday for our family. I've decided that Christmas is much more fun with little kids. I remember when it was just Ty and myself, it seemed a little boring after a quick Christmas morning so we'd quickly run off to visit family in the afternoon. But this year the kids made it so fun. Christmas Eve we spent the evening getting excited for the following morning - we got we wrote our little letter to Santa to put with our brownies and milk and had them laid out for Santa by the fireplace. Then we each opened one present that night (which was always a tradition in both my family and Ty's). It turned out that the kids picked one of their presents from Grandma and Grandpa Bazil which were Pillow Pets. They are little pillows in the shape of stuffed animals kind of (hard to explain) but they are so cute and so soft. So that is what the kids cuddled with while we read a Christmas story before bed. Ty and I played Santa's little helpers for about 3 1/2 hrs. and got a couple hours sleep before the kids woke us up (thankfully not until about 8:30am).
They were plenty surprised to see what Santa had left them. Vanna kept saying wo...wo in her cute little way. This year we decided to get them one larger gift (really because when else do you have an exuse to get something kind of big?) rather than a bunch of little things (that I would get to pick up several times a day, everyday) so we got Cash a battery operated four-wheeler and Vanna a kitchen. Their daddy also got them each a little gift: Vanna a dollie stroller and Cash a Spiderman fishing tackle box. They each got a new outfit and some new books and stocking stuffers (umbrellas, movies, and candy etc.). They were so happy with their new gifts. It was fun explaining that we give gifts at CHRISTmas time to help us remember the Christmas story and all the gifts that our Savior has given us. We keep putting these plugs in and hope we can always keep the real meaning of Christmas in our holiday.
Ty and I spoiled ourselves this year with....
...a new bedroom. We actually saw our bedroom set for a great price a couple months ago and couldn't pass it up since we knew we'd be getting it anyway. Once we got that and the new bedding, I knew what colors I was going to work with and finally put a few things on the wall and got a rug to go with it all. This next summer we plan on painting (in the shade of a deep bluish gray color found in the rug) and putting up some decorative trim on the walls. Ty got a leather jacket to wear while he rides his bike and he got me the chair massager that you see on the chair in the above picture (he said he got me that so that I'll stop asking him to rub my back all the time :). We each got some clothes and stocking stuffers as well. We also got some board games (which we're so excited to start using since we hardly had any to play before) and some much needed utensils and kitchen knives from family - among other things. We thought we were cutting back a little this year (well, except for the bedroom - but we planned on doing it anyway, Christmas was just a good excuse for it) but when you add up what family gives you we were simply spoiled rotten again.
We had a yummy breakfast and took the rest of the day kind of easy until that evening when we shared Christmas dinner with a couple families we had over. They are some of our dearest friends here in Payette and both families are moving. We're so sad to see them go. None of us have family nearby and weren't going to see family for the holiday so we decided to get together for dinner. We're so glad we did because we had a great time. The kids got to play all together one last time after dinner while the grown-ups played games together. There was so much food and fun we were simply done in by the end of the night. But what a great holiday it turned out to be. One that we will always remember. How was yours? I can't wait to hear. And by the way - Happy New Year!
And my very first quilt! It turned out SOOO cute too. I made it for my ex-sister-in-law (I guess that's how I can identify her but she's still a great friend) and her new baby girl - Brooklynn. I liked it so much it was actually hard to part with. I guess I'll just have to make one for Vanna now too. The front was all different styles of flannel and the back was that super soft minky kind of stuff (I don't even know the name of it). Anyway, I'm so glad I started out with a baby quilt because I saw a finished product much sooner than if I had taken on a full fledged queen quilt. I was just happy I didn't ruin it and that it turned out. Thanks again to my great friend for all her teaching and help! 
