Our Family Christmas

I think I'm getting close to catching up! :) For all of you who've stuck with me, thanks! I hope you've enjoyed watching our family grow as much as we have!

What would Christmas be without our Santa Party with friends?! Grant told me a few weeks before the party that Santa wasn't real. I can't remember ever telling him one way or the other, so we just went with it. I told him that he could still be excited to participate in the make believe, but I hoped and prayed that he wouldn't ruin it for the other kids. Low and behold, Grant was screaming the loudest when Santa entered the house! Aubrie was not so sure about Santa. She sat on his lap only because she had her big brother with her. We concluded the party with some gingerbread house decorating.

Since Grant is going to school now, we get to participate in so many new things...including Christmas programs! His program was for the whole school (Preschool-5th grade), and we had no idea that we needed to get there hours early to get a good seat! As it ended up, we were WAY in the back and had to rely on the zoom on our cameras to even really see him! He was SO stinkin' cute though! He loves school and has come to love singing. He was so brave up there and did a great job!

We celebrated Christmas with the Caswell side on the weekend before Christmas. That way everyone could be there. We had dinner at our house the first night, breakfast at the Daniel's house the next morning, Christmas celebrating and dinner at Poppin and Grandma's house that night. The kids got completely spoiled! It was a full weekend of cousins and tons of fun! I know I've said it before, but our kids LOVE their big cousins. Grant just thinks they are the coolest thing ever, and Aubrie has started to love them too. They do such a great job of playing with the little ones and showing them love.

Christmas Day was really special for us this year. We stayed home and had our own family Christmas in our own home. It was so much fun to have the kids wake up Christmas morning in their own house. They might not care, but we wanted to start building the tradition of waking up in your own house on Christmas morning that both Paul and I loved so much growing up. Poppin and Grandma joined us for breakfast and present opening.

 On Christmas afternoon we took off for Florence. We didn't want to miss GG's Christmas party with the Johnson clan.

The next morning we had yet another Christmas morning with Gammy, Poppop, Aunt Addi, and Aunt Kate. Our kids were spoiled once again. And they love all the special attention they get when they are the only grandkids and niece and nephew around!

Merry Christmas!

The BIG Snow

We don't get snow too often in Medford, and when we do, it doesn't stay around for long. In December though, we got a ton! We had heard that a storm was on its way, and on a Friday afternoon it started coming down! Grant was the first to go out. He played and played all by himself for quite a while. When Daddy finally got home they had some great sledding time! Aubrie wasn't too sure about the snow. I think being cold was a major issue for her. She finally settled in enough to play on the back porch and then a little in the snow.
The snow was fun, but the no hot water for three days due to frozen pipes was not! Although it did make our little cabin in the woods feel more like a cabin. I'm such a pioneer woman...I had to boil water to wash dishes! Haha! And we didn't really leave the house for quite a few days. The roads were pretty icy, and we had fun just cozying up and being home.

And two weeks later...snow still on the ground...it's finally time to shovel the walk for guests!

Giving Thanks and Decking the Halls

Yes, still catching up...
Thanksgiving weekend was super busy for us. We spent Thanksgiving Day at home and had dinner with the Caswell side. Then we traveled to Florence to spend the rest of the weekend and do "Christmas" with the Stone side. Jordan and Elizabeth weren't going to be able to come back in December, so we had Christmas early. We all got to meet baby August, the third addition to the Ohio Stone family. Enjoy my explosion of pictures!


Thanksgiving Day in Medford

Picking Poppop and Gammy's Christmas tree in Florence...and ice cream afterwards!

Stone Family Christmas Fun

I thought some of you might enjoy watching the craziness that goes on when we all get together at Poppop and Gammy's house. There is no better entertainment than little kids!