Christmas Time

We hope that y'all had a very Merry Christmas!

Here is what we did:

Christmas Eve -
It was time to make some yummy cookies for Santa.

While they cooled, we did a few crafts.

Then it was time to decorate (and maybe eat a few too.)

After a busy morning at home, it was time to get dressed up and drive Uptown to go to one of Elevation's four Christmas Eve services. The services were so good! You can watch a short highlight video here for the next few days. I wish that I had a family picture for you...but here is a picture of Miss Alyse.

Alyse and I came home and she opened her Christmas Eve present (new jammies).

Soon she was in bed. Papa and Grammy showed up soon afterwards, and then Josh got home from church. So Santa got to work.

Then he ate his cookies.
Christmas Day -

We woke up pretty early to start the festivities.

My mom and I started the monkey bread muffins and then Josh read us the Christmas story.

Then Alyse was ready to see what Santa had left her.

I love her face in this picture.

She loved her house and spent most of the day playing in it.

After our Santa presents it was time for the rest of us to open presents too. I received the first gift - a new camera. I have to work with it and figure it out, but I think I like it. The rest of the pictures were taken on it. Notice a difference?

First picture on the new camera - Josh eating his monkey bread.

After we played with the camera for a little bit, it was back to opening presents. Alyse loved everything that she got.
Along with my camera, I got a Flip (which I have wanted for awhile now), a photo edit program, and a few other fun things including some Bump Its from my sister.

I decided that Josh was going to have a closet make over for Christmas, so he got some new clothes. My parents surprised him by getting him a Wii. I would like to announce that I was the one who won the first game on the Wii. Here are Josh and Alyse playing a little baseball.

My sister and her husband Jessie came over for a huge big breakfast and to open a few more presents.

A little while later my mom and I headed to the kitchen to start our Christmas dinner. There we discovered a small problem. The turkey that I had put out to thaw almost 48hrs before was still frozen solid! We discussed having a "vegetarian meal" and just make all the sides. Then my dad got in the car to drive around to see if he could find any grocery stores or anything open. We had no luck. After a lot of discussion it was decided to save all the groceries for next week's New Years meal and my parents went to the only place that they found open - a Chinese restaurant and brought home our Christmas dinner. This was the first time we have ever done that! And I hope that it is the last time! Josh and I are not Chinese food fans at all, but we just had to laugh and try to enjoy it.

Awhile later, my parents headed out to our friend's house and then on to my sister's. We stayed home because Josh's whole family was coming over for dessert and snacks. It was time to open a few more presents and then turn the Wii on again.

By the end of the night I was exhausted, but we had a very Merry Christmas.