I'm excited to pop in with a merry recap of our Christmas……Christmases that is. Between both sides of the family we had 5 different celebrations and I wouldn't have had it any other way. I realize how lucky we are, some families end up running themselves ragged during the holiday season. But all of our activities were close and spread out over the course of a few weeks, so we truly got to enjoy each one!
We always have a day of Christmas fun with our own family, involving a yummy breakfast and opening presents. The girls were so thankful and kind as they opened each gift this year. Made my Mama heart proud….because this is something we've worked on a lot. Gratefulness seems to be a learned habit for both the girls and I.
I shared on Instagram that I decided ahead of time what I could allow into my schedule this year, especially creatively speaking. I have gobs of ideas for creative gift wrap, but not near enough time so I kept it simple with brown contractor's paper from Lowe's and a few other fun embellishments.
Of course, I am very much a real-life human (not just beautiful photos) because one night about halfway into the wrapping I realized I'd put the wrong names on the girls' presents. So a quick crepe paper tag fixed the situation. :)
Decorating for our Christmas Eve dinner was simply my fave…….
maybe I should do this more often?!
Who are these big girls?! Where did my babies go?!?
(ok, typical mom freak-out moment over. It's SO good having toddlers! But it goes SO fast with two!)
Every year we pull out our handmade stockings I created a few years back….
it's like seeing an old, favorite friend.
Gingerbread houses are another favorite tradition of ours! I do these the easy way-by hot gluing graham crackers together and then buying a tub of cheap icing and candy for decorating. We rarely buy candy (like never) so it's fun to let the girls indulge in a sugary treat!
At my mom's Christmas celebration she had things planned so cute, like this food!
My twin and I!
My mom also had the coolest scavenger hunt set up for the kids called "Spot the Dot". The sheet had clues and as the kids went to the designated place that solved the clue, they looked for their color dot to stick on the tree. It ended with a treasure box! So fun I'm planning on doing it again with the girls!
(my super-talented sister-in-law snapped some family photos I'll share soon! I thought this little one of Betsy and I was funny!)
Next, to Grandma and Papaw's! The girls and I visit here about once a month and it is one of our favorite places in the world to be! I have such great, vivid memories of being here for Christmas as a child too.
(this photo…..gets me every single time. I love you Grandma!)
The adults exchange names for presents and it is fun to wait the whole year to see who had your name!
And that's a wrap!
I know many people are glad when the holidays are over, but not us!
We truly enjoyed each and every moment and get together. All of us being at home together more than normal is always a bit of an adjustment (Brett gets a lot of time off during the holidays), but we figured out our rhythm pretty quickly this year and weren't ready for it to end.
I am thankful, so very thankful, for so many wonderful people in my family to talk to, love on, and spend time with.
How were your holidays?
For those who had hard memories this year…..
you made it. You are brave and strong and I'm praying for you.
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