christmas day 2012!!

ben and i went to sleep around 1:30 am, i coughed all night and then we were up with the kids around 7:30.  i both looked and sounded like booty, so i'm not in any of these pictures.

christmas morning at our home:


you know those gifts that you give your kids....

the ones where you think, "why did we bother getting them anything else?"

two words:

snow globes.  

they were found in their stockings and seriously, it's all they cared about for the next 10 minutes.  that is, until june dropped hers on the tile floor & hers started leaking out water with a strange-smelling odor.  then the tears started, not only hers, but leah's.  because of course, june went right for leah's after she had broken her own.  we have now had to hide caleb and leah's snow globes out of june's sight or there are immediate problems.

oh well, moving on.

in our home, santa doesn't get the glory.  he fills the stockings with a few small things, brings a christmas book and brings one toy for our kids.  it's worked out nicely this way...not only because ben and i feel we work hard, save, and plan for the really fun gifts and kind of want the credit, but also because when our 7 year old busts out that he's planning on asking santa for an ipad {SERIOUSLY}, we can sweetly remind him that it's not going to happen, because that's not what we have agreed with santa that we want in our home.  

side noteslashtangent:

we worked really hard with caleb this year on the true meaning of christmas.  in years past, he hasn't really cared too much.  {one year all he asked for was underpants, not even kidding.}  somehow the age of seven has taken over him like a greedy monster and drove me to the brink.  

i got so tired of hearing him complain/whine/beg/cry about getting some insanely expensive electronic that 4 days before christmas, he came home from school to find all of his wrapped presents pulled out from under the tree, sitting on our kitchen table.  i informed him that each of the members of his family had bought these for him because they loved him and were excited to buy him something that would bring him happiness.  but with his continual carrying-on about all of the things he wasn't getting, he was sending the message to us that he didn't want or need our presents, and that it was hurtful to us.  so, i told him that for the 4 days before christmas, we would put his gifts out in the garage.  and that his job was to spend the next 4 days thinking of others and doing kind services for them.  i told him that ben and i would be doing the same thing, just to help him out.  and that at the end of 4 days, if he was trying his hardest and doing his best to think of others, then he could earn his presents back.  otherwise, they were going to be given to children who would be thankful for them.

harsh?  probably.

but did it work?  absolutely.  i have never seen that kid more kind or helpful.  it was great.

side note/tangent over.

here are some of my favorite pictures of the day, please pay close attention to june's fantastically over the top christmas bedhead:

i mean seriously.  you couldn't pull a brush through that mop if you tried.

ben's expression here kills me.  i can still totally hear the sound he made while pulling this face.

\

this was where i wrapped up the remote to the ceiling fan in our bedroom and gave it to ben.

we've been missing that dang thing for about 6 months and there's no other way to turn on the fan.  

{i know, who thought that was a good idea??}

and it seriously drove ben insane.  i would hear about it pretty much every night.

so i thought it would be the best if i could find it & wrap it for ben for christmas.  i became a woman on a mission, a woman determined. 

and wha-lah!  i found it tucked clearrrrrr underneath our treadmill.

needless to say, he was ecstatic.  

and the house for the girls??

a huge hit.

and?  it's really actually IS huge.

the 5 of us ate our christmas cinnamon rolls in it.  together.  with room to spare.

the rest of the day was spent in our pajamas, not leaving the house.  i took a much-needed nap, ben made an amazing ham and mashed potatoes dinner, and then i got the best workout i've had in a while sword fighting with ben on our new {and free} Wii.  {thank you andrea!}

we had a really amazing christmas this year, and reminded me again how grateful i am for my little family.