Christmas 2015.

Christmas Break is officially over. The kids are back at school and I now have a moment to reflect on our time off. We once again packed as much goodness as possible into this time, and I am left satisfied and thankful for the opportunities taken to catch up with family and friends. Of course, spending lots of quality time with my own little family was one of the very best parts of it all.

Movie nights and lazy mornings, Christmas programs and family gatherings, play-dates with cousins and cookie decorating with friends... Many of our days were overflowing with people to see and things to do, but there were also plenty of days where we did absolutely nothing. The balance between the busyness and laziness was key for us in creating a relaxing, joy-filled break.





We continued our traditions of wearing pajamas to see the Festival of Lights, attending the Kernersville Star Lighting celebration with friends, and visiting our favorite Santa (while also raising money for a local children's charity). Looking back, it's even more clear to me that we are immensely blessed with people who make our days brighter and our memories that much sweeter.


Another fantastic part of Christmas this year was having my Granny living just 20 minutes away! Now that she is a North Carolina resident, we see her so much more than we ever have. We were able to spend Christmas Eve with her at my mom's house, and then joined her for lunch on Christmas Day. This has been such a new and exciting change for all of us.

(Ethan's Preschool Christmas Program)

(Christmas Afternoon)

Discovering what Santa left behind on Christmas morning is always cause for some of the best feelings of anticipation and excitement, even for the adults! It was a Star Wars/Lego Set Christmas for Ethan. He's obsessed. No matter how many Lego pieces and characters he gets, he is always wanting more to add to his collection. He asked Santa for an advanced Lego set this year, one with nearly 1,000 pieces. It was all the kid talked about for months. He was thrilled to see that Santa not only brought him the set, but also assembled it for him before sleigh-riding off to the next house!


Gracie's big gift from Santa was an iPod. She also adores her huge stuffed unicorn pillow. :)


Our sweet puppy, Vader, enjoyed his first Christmas, too! Santa filled his stocking with toys and treats. Vader also enjoyed Ethan's puppy pillow... Maybe Santa should have brought him one of his own!



After another beautiful holiday season, we are looking forward to this new year and all that it will deliver. Our prayer, as always, is for good health and happy children. As Sean begins a new career opportunity as Network Engineer for Ashley Furniture, we also pray for an easy transition period and lots of success! Happy 2016!


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Decisions, Decisions...

...but I think I've made up my mind. I've been going back and forth, back and forth, practically since I started blogging 3 years ago: Public or Private blog? I've decided that since I share quite a bit about my family, and share lots of pictures of my children (some watermarked, most not), These Little Moments will now be a private blog. I've never felt comfortable with the fact that there are literally hundreds of photos of my daughter, our family members, and now my son posted on the Internet for anyone and everyone to see. For those of you who would like to continue keeping up with Gracie, Ethan, and our family, let me know! I will send you an invitation to the private blog. I'll still be following along with your blogs, just not publishing publicly on my own anymore. I'm going to go ahead and make the switch at the end of the week. And to those who I know are following along... Just expect an invitation! :)
Read more

The end is near.

My husband is confident. He's determined, speaks his mind, and lives for a challenge. If you tell him something cannot be done, be prepared to be proven wrong. I rarely see him get nervous, for any reason... almost. My 38-week appointment was this morning. As usual, Sean and Gracie were with me, which I love. I was anxious to get to this appointment because I started having uncomfortable cramping yesterday evening, which then lasted through the night and even into the morning. I've experienced a few other "preliminary signs" of labor which have led me to believe that we're coming up on the end here. After talking with the doctor, he offered to check my progress and strip my membranes. This is when I got a little tickled, even as I was sitting on an exam table naked from the waist down, with nothing but a paper sheet wrapped around me. As the doctor began to describe the "stripping of the membranes" process, I had my eyes on Sean. His expressions were...
Read more

Hilton Head.

Image
I was feeling heavy. Overwhelmed. Tired. The combination of sick children, sleep deprivation, and very little "me" time was starting to push me down a bit. I don't like feeling that way. I want to wake up with a smile on my face. I want to feel motivated and light . Our Hilton Head vacation arrived at the perfect time. Packing was a nightmare, but once our car hit the highway, I felt it... Freedom . It didn't matter that I was taking a sick child along, or that I was still going to be sleep deprived. Those things are easier to handle when you get a change in scenery, especially when that scenery becomes blue skies and an endless ocean. As we do each year in January, we joined Sean's dad and step-mom for a winter get-away. The weather was kind to us this year. Gracie loves the beach. She runs, and runs, and digs, and even plops down long enough to enjoy the change of scenery for herself. Ethan was unsure of the cool sand, but even he seemed to appreciate the fres...
Read more