Christmas

 

Merry Christmas!!!

Our morning started with all the normal excitement. The anticipation that Santa had visited our home and all the excitement and squeals that come from young children. 

Our boys were actually kind enough to let us sleep in a little bit, which I was very grateful for. You see, not only am I pregnant, but we stayed up a great deal of the night "helping" Santa.

For Christmas, the older boys got a new bed, and not just any ordinary bed, but a bunk bed. 

 

I found a killer deal for it on Craigslist. But, I wasn't able to clean it properly, which it needed, until it was set up during the night. 

Then if cleaning and setting up a bed wasn't a big enough task, we actually switched the boys' rooms and clothes. You see, Roger has always been my most social and people loving child, and putting him to bed has been difficult for he is the life of the party and will keep whomever he is with up and playing for several hours. For the last year and a half, Roger has had his own room while Michael and William shared and Grant had the baby room.

We took the bed out of Roger's room, put the bunk beds in there and moved Michael's clothes and things into their new room. Then we moved Grant's clothes and things into William's rooms. Good thing the boys were asleep on the floor in my room. 

So after letting us sleep in a little bit (for it being Christmas morning), we went downstairs.

 

The boys were excited to see what Santa had left them in their stockings, especially William, he loved the magic of it.

 

In their stockings, the boys got a tape measure, exciting I know, but they loved it. They also always get a few chocolate coins, they love them. For several weeks after Christmas last year, Grant would hand me any coin he found insisting that I open it for him. 

 

In their stockings they also found night lights.Upon finding them, I suggested that we go upstairs to their rooms.

Sheer excitement came when they saw the bunk beds.

 

William and Grant were pretty excited about their new room as well

 

Then we went back downstairs to open a few more presents and to have our traditional Christmas morning breakfast, Crepples

 

Then we got dressed and went to church.

After a wonderful and uplifting meeting, we came home and took pictures of the boys all dressed up, enjoying a beautiful and sunny day - something we don't get many of, especially during the winter.

Christmas Eve

On Christmas Eve, we made and decorated cookies for Santa

 

Then we did the Nativity

 

Roger even got on his shoes that he thinks looks like they came from the time era

 

Grant helped to get the boys to smile while I took pictures

  

Here they are smiling because of him

But I still wanted a picture with Grant in it, he was not too happy to no longer be the person to get them to smile

But we finally did get one of him smiling

Todd was an angel, I was Mary, Michael was shepherd and innkeeper, Roger was a wiseman, William was Joseph, and Grant was an innkeeper but was grumpy when his time to perform came up, so he just watched and yelled

Things can get pretty crazy around here

Then the boys got to open one present (well, actually two). Grandma Patti got them their Christmas pajamas and each of them a Pillow Pet Sleeping bag (or whatever it's called)

 

Then it was time to go to sleep

 

The boys were excited to use their new sleeping bags, and since Santa needed to get into their rooms, I had them sleep on the floor of my bedroom. Here they are, excited about the next day

This is how they ended up after tossing and turning all around the place, oh and Grant had moved to my bed

Christmas Card

 MERRY CHRISTMAS


To those that may not have gotten our Christmas card, here's a view of it:

 

And here's the picture that went along with it, a picture depicting each item that was checked off our list:

 

Since I was feeling so sick with this pregnancy, I was debating whether or not to even do any Christmas cards. Fortunately I was able to enlist the help of my kids and we were able to do it.

To make the "To Do List" look more authentic, I had hand written it (then used a copy machine after that) on lined, notebook paper. Then to make it look like we had kept the piece of paper around all year, I wrinkled the paper up to look really old and used. I wasn't sure how I felt about that last step, I thought that people may think that I had grabbed a messed up letter out of the trash to give them a card, but my sister insisted that it was cute. So, I did the crinkling on about half the cards (plus it was Michael's favorite step of the process)

Hope you had a great Christmas

All I want for Christmas

is my two front teeth

Which may actually be the only thing that Michael wants.
Whenever he is asked what he wants for Christmas he says "Nothing".  None of my boys have been asking for anything, which in some ways I do appreciate, but at least Roger will say, "Whatever I get". Michael really doesn't feel as though he needs (or apparently wants) anything.

Then a couple of weeks ago, Todd was reading the Book of Mormon with the boys. He got to the part where Christ had visited the people and that there were several hundred years of peace, no class divisions, but just love. But then very slowly, the people became prideful, desiring to have costly apparel, have more than their neighbors, and fell into corruption. Upon hearing this Michael declared, "I'm so sick of Santa....I don't want any presents".

Hope he is okay with Christmas morning.

Testimony

A couple of weeks ago, Roger decided to bear (or is it bare?) his testimony during Fast & Testimony meeting. In our faith, the first Sunday of the month all those that are physically able will fast for 24 hours. Fasting is a lot like going without food while trying to keep your focus on Christ and prayer rather on the food or thoughts of hunger. When we fast, we try to have a purpose to our fast. There have been times that our church leaders have asked us to fast for a specific purpose, but mostly it is an individual decision as to what to fast for each month.
On these Fast Sundays (that don't seem to go by very quickly), instead of having people come with prepared talks for Sacrament Meeting, members of the congregation are invited to come and share their testimony. I love this meeting, I feel that for the most part, the Spirit is so strong and that people are very humble in their testimony sharing.  ANYWAY- long exclamation, but if you have never been to one, I thought I would try to explain it a little.

Roger has gone up one other time before. When he had gone up the first time I didn't know what to expect. He had previously shared with me his desire to go up, and I encouraged it, but when he climbed the stairs at the front I got nervous. Would he get too nervous and come down and cry? Would he act silly? When he got up to the microphone he had a very nervous look on his face, then he looked down at me. I nodded and with that he put his hands up on the pulpit and gave a very appropriate and strong testimony.
So, when Roger wanted to go up a couple of weeks ago, I knew that he could do it and was not nervous at all.
He marched right up there.
Nervously looked at me.
Put his hands on the pulpit.
Then began.
He said some very appropriate things, and things that would normally be said. But being Roger, he had to be 100% truthful.
He shared how much he loved the Book of Mormon and that he knew that it was true. Then he said...
"I know that some things in the Bible are not true....but that some of them are true"

I had to just laugh. I know I have mentioned to the boys that we believe the Holy Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly, but I was surprised that he remembered so much and understood so well.

I hope that Roger didn't offend anyone with that comment, but then again, we will be taught out of the mouth of babes.

Christmas Lights

We had set up all of the Christmas decorations and the house was beautiful.
When my mom had come to visit, she had brought some gifts for the boys, which we put under the tree.
Grant immediately wanted to open the gifts. I told him that he couldn't for we had to wait for Christmas. After trying to persuade me, he realized two things: 1. I was not going to budge and 2. That it was NOT Christmas day.
He went over and turned off the Christmas tree lights. I figured that this was one of his tantrum mechanisms and decided to ignore it and just let the tree be dark.

The next day I switched the Christmas tree lights on. Grant then asked me if it was Christmas. After hearing that it was not, he marched over to the tree and turned off the lights.

It was then that I realized two things: 1. he was not trying to punish me by turning off the Christmas tree lights and 2. He assumed that you can only have the Christmas tree lights turned on if that day is actually Christmas.