Christmas!

The first Chrismas we had this season was Christmas with Nanny, Papa Bud, and Ma (my grandma). Piper kept talking about wanting roller skates for Christmas. My mom got her some. She was so excited! They came with elbow pads and knee pads. She wore them around the house for a few days after that.

Finn also got roller skates. He also was excited. I don't think he was as excited as Piper was, though.

And of course, we can't forget Seven. He also got roller skates. He got knee pads and elbow pads, too, but he wasn't wearing them. Look how excited Piper looks! I'm not sure what Finn was doing. Maybe he was showing off his elbow pad.

Rilian got these blocks. They are really neat because they can stack on top of each other and they can also be put inside one another.

He really likes the blocks! I think they are one of his favorite Christmas presents.
Then we had Christmas with Granny and Dadabe. They got the kids their own personal portable dvd players. No more fighting over which movie they are going to watch! They will also come in handy when we take trips. Seven was trying his out. Doesn't he look very relaxed?

Their dvd players came with headphones. This makes them extra nice, if you know what I am saying. Do you like Piper's foot rest?
Next was the real Christmas. You know, the one where Santa leaves presents under the Christmas tree. When the kids went to see Santa, he told them he liked chocolate chip cookies and chocolate milk. So, they helped Daddy make some chocolate chip cookies for Santa. I think they were trying to get more presents because they also put M & M's in the cookies. Yes, you are seeing this picture correctly. Seven thought Santa would also want some cookies from McDonald's. So we gave him chocolate chip cookies with M & M's, McDonald's cookies, a carrot for the reindeer, and some chocolate milk.
The Christmas tree with the presents below that Santa had brought.

Seven wasn't like the typical kid opening presents. But when is Seven like the typical kid? Most kids open a present and MAYBE look at what was wrapped up inside the paper and then immediately start ripping open the next present. Not Seven. He actually took the time to look at and play with what was inside the wrapping paper. I had to keep reminding him that he had more to open. The kids got rainboots and umbrellas. Seven was wearing his frog rainboots.
Finn with his Transformer, Bumblebee. I don't know why he put it in front of his face.

Opening presents...What is Finn wearing, you ask? He has Batman pajamas that have a cape to go with them. He really likes to wear the cape with them.

Swords! Finn and Seven really wanted swords from Santa. Santa was able to make them happy.

Piper, once again, said she wanted a black cat. I told her she has a white bird that her black cat would eat. She said Fluffy, her parakeet, could just stay in his cage. I think Santa did a good job at giving her a black cat. This little kitty meows when you pet its back and will even purr if you keep petting it. Pretty close to the real thing, if you ask me. Seven has really been enjoying watching the Wonder Pets and The Backyardigans. He got a new Backyardigans dvd. I think he is hiding behind it because he saw Finn do that with the Transformer.

Piper was so sweet to help Rilian open one of his presents. I think maybe she just wanted to open more, but I could be wrong, because she can be really sweet sometimes.

Rilian got a board book with farm animals. It is one of those books that has different textures on it too. He really likes his new book. Rilian got upset when I took his book away so he could open more presents.
Rilian got a little car that he can ride on, or we can put the seat up and it is a toy that he can walk and push. We thought he might like this toy for some encouragement to walk.

Christmas Eve Surprise!

It was forcasted to snow in the middle of the night, December 23. I looked at the hour-by-hour forecast and all I saw was rain. So, I wasn't getting my hopes up for any snow. I was very surprised when I woke up on Christmas Eve and the ground was covered with snow and it was still coming down! I opened the blinds to the sliding glass door so I could watch it fall as I ate my breakfast. When Piper woke up she walked right by the sliding glass door and didn't bother to look out at the snow. She had no clue that it had snowed. I said, "Piper, look. It snowed!" Her face lit up as she looked out the window and saw the snow.

The kids couldn't wait to go outside and play in the snow. They barely ate their breakfast, they were so excited. Here they are getting ready.

Outside...in the snow! Look at it coming down! At first, Piper, Finn, and Seven just walked around in it.
Then Piper and Finn made snow angels. Here is Finn's snow angel. They were so fast, I couldn't get their picture when they were making the snow angels. And they wouldn't lay back down so I could take a picture of them.
Piper's snow angel. Seven had a blast just walking around in the snow. He didn't want to make a snow angel.
More walking around in the snow...you can really see it coming down! It was thick!
You can see the smile on Seven's face as he walks in the snow.
Look at how much snow is on their slide!

Piper was eating the snow. I think it's funny that her hands were in her pockets.

It was snowing so much that it started to stick to Seven's hair. You can even see it on his eyelashes. And it was all over his coat. Remember, he didn't lay down and make a snow angel. It was just coming down that hard!
Icicles on our table that were later eaten by our children.
Oh, look...there is Finn eating one of the icicles now. Do you see the snowflakes on his eyelashes?
Piper saw the snow on the tree branches and decided to eat it. What is it with kids eating snow? Every time Seven came inside, he would eat the snow off the toe of his boots before he did anything else.

It took them awhile to discover all the snow on the slide, but when they finally did see it, they decided to go down the snow covered slide. The expression on Finn's face is great!

There wasn't much snow left for Finn to plow through, since Piper went first, but he still had fun going down the slide.

Of course, I had to get the standard shot, or what seems to be a standard shot for Texans (or people who aren't used to snow)...the snow on their vehicle. You can see all the snow on the road in the background, too.

Jeremy made a nice, warm, toasty fire for when Piper, Finn, and Seven were done playing in the snow. That way they were sure to get warm. Rilian enjoyed the fire, too.
The sun came out later on. But you can see that it snowed alot. The snow angels that Piper and Finn had made...well, you can't see them anymore. And when the kids were outside playing in the snow, you could still see the grass a little. Now, you can't.

Decorating our Christmas Tree

We got another real tree this year. We like the real thing! It was time to decorate and Seven decided to have a little fun as the lights were being put on the tree. I'm not sure if he thought he was a Christmas tree, or if he thought he needed to be decorated too. You just never know with that kid! What Christmas tree decorating is complete without some Christmas music playing in the background. Here is a picture of Seven dancing to the music. He is very musically inclined. He almost can't help but to dance when he hears music. All my boys are like that. He put the beads on himself that were supposed to be going on the tree and started dancing. It was hilarious!
Finn was my little helper this year. He held the beads while I put them on the tree.

Rilian has learned to pose for the camera. This is how he says "cheese."

Piper found two of her ornaments. The one in her right hand is her "1st Christmas" picture. The ornament in her left hand is one she made last year at MOPS.
I let the kids pick out which ornaments they wanted to put on the tree. Then I let them put the ornaments on the tree where they wanted to put them. Here is Piper putting on an ornament.

Finn putting on an ornament.
Seven putting on an ornament.
The finished product with four wonderful gifts from God. I have to say they did a really good job decorating the tree!

Boogie Reindeer

Finn had his preschool program this year and they were reindeer. Very cute! While waiting for it to begin, Seven was being Seven. His chair swallowed him. He is such a ham!
I was very surprised at how well both Seven and Rilian sat so still and watched Finn's program. Piper did good, too. Here are a few shots of Finn. To his left is Kase, his best friend. They were both a hoot to watch. I couldn't help but to laugh!

Here they are really getting down. They were boogieing! (If that is a word)