December Round Up

Brace yourself, there are a lot of pictures coming your way...

December was a wonderful month. I loved uploading all of these pictures because it reminded me again of all the fun that was had. Since having children, Steve and I have tried to be intentional about our Advent season, making sure to leave room for plenty of family snuggle time. Yes, it was a busy month, but a great month spent celebrating the hope that Jesus's birth has brought to our world.

Tree trimmin' with Daddy. 

Enjoying the Mission Inn lights with our dear friends, Leila and Sadie. And yes, Delaney is wearing kitty ears.

One December afternoon, Delaney and I had a very special date: gingerbread house building at the library. The library is one of our favorite places, and it was so nice having some one-on-one time with my little creative gal.

Hard at work! 

Happy as clams!

She took a bite out of every piece of candy before placing it on her house. Such a candy junkie like her mama!

The finished product! Just as I went to take the photo, it collapsed. Bummer! 

Afterwards, because we didn't have enough sugar running through our veins, we got ourselves some hot cocoa. This kid is a ton of fun to be with. I love my big girl!

During one weekend in December, Sky Country hosted a fun Christmas workshop and book fair. On a whim, we went and got our pictures taken with Mr. and Mrs. Claus. Check out Jude's expression below:

The stuff Christmas memories are made of!

But don't worry! Jude drowned his anxiety and sorrows in a gigantic cup of hot chocolate. 

We also attempted a family photo shot. This picture turned out pretty cute and was what we ended up using for our Christmas card. However, our cards from Costco printed out super dark, so it looks like we were hiding in the shadows. Please remind me next year that Costco pictures always turn out dark! 

And we spent lots of time at Target in December. Popcorn for breakfast! (Not really.)

Steve and I made jam for neighbors and friends. My mom is the jam queen and I had her on speed dial throughout the entire process. Despite a few missteps, it turned out great.

Back to the library for the Teddy Bear Tea! 

Delaney with her friends Abby and Gwyneth.

Lots of baking in December!

Making cookies with Auntie Beans...

and with Nana...

and Uncle Monkey!

We went back to the Mission Inn to have the full Santa experience. It was a memory maker for sure! Jude freaked out (no big surprise there...) and Santa wouldn't let him sit on his lap! So, Steve and I got to join in the picture. And then Santa never even asked Delaney what she wanted for Christmas, so I sort of went back and made Santa ask her. Anyway, it wasn't how I pictured how things would go down, but where's the fun in that?

In line for Santa...of course he's all smiles here!

One big, happy family!

Our small group from church got together for a fun and competitive ugly sweater party. By the end of the evening, my face hurt from laughing so much!

The men!

The women!

This is a very special dress. Delaney is wearing it for her Christmas performance at school, and looked cute as a button. This red dress was originally my mom's dress, and then my dress, and now Delaney's dress. She wore it proudly!

Christmas party at her school! 

And even though it's winter, it's really nice this time of year and the oranges are in season. J. Billy loves citrus, even though it makes him break out in a crazy rash.

So, stay tuned for pictures of our actual Christmas day celebrations...