Christmas 2010

We had a great Christmas!  On Christmas Eve, we attended the 4:00 family service at our church followed by dinner at my parents' house.  It had started snowing a little earlier in the day, so it was like driving through a winter wonderland.  Things like this make Christmas even more special.  After we got home, we did our last Advent wreath celebration.  Hailey loves to blow the candles out at the end, but I wanted to leave the Jesus candle lit a little while longer for reflection.  Hailey was adamant about blowing it out, so I said, "Hailey, what did I just say?"  She said, "Not to blow out the candle like this..." and proceeded to try to blow it out again.  She listens well, right?  We went over the Nativity scene again having her identify each figure and told her that tomorrow morning (many many years ago), Jesus was born.  She said, "He was?"  You could see her trying to understand.  After we blew out the Jesus candle, Hailey went outside to throw out the reindeer food she had made at daycare out for Santa's reindeer (marshmallows, oatmeal, and glitter).  She said she wanted to put it in the backyard, so we headed out back.  She made sure to throw all of it out there and was so excited!  We came inside and put the cookies & milk out for Santa then headed up to bed.

 All dressed for church!

She loved her dress!

About the reindeer food.

Throwing the food out around the backyard.

 Milk & cookies all set out.

On Christmas morning, Brian & I got up at 6:30 and woke Hailey up a little after that.  I've always been so excited for Christmas morning that I still have a hard time sleeping at night!  We told Hailey that Santa had visited the house and she said, "He did?!"  She had asked him for a Barbie and he didn't forget!  She was very excited!  I said, "Hailey, today Jesus was born.  It's Jesus' birthday!"  She said, "He was born today?"  I said, "Yeah."  She said, "OUR baby Jesus was born today?"  She was referring to the baby Jesus in our Nativity set. :-)  She opened a couple more gifts from Brian & I and then we ate breakfast and got cleaned up before heading over to my parents' house.

 Santa's gifts

Opening a gift from Mommy & Daddy.

All three of us opened lots of great gifts from my family!  After eating lunch, Hailey, Brian, and I performed "Jingle Bells" on the hand bells that Santa had gotten her.  Then my brother played the guitar while my sisters & I sang a version of "Amazing Grace" our pastor (from our previous church in Pennsylvania) taught us.  Hailey & Laura wanted to strum Uncle Vince's guitar afterward, so he helped them learn how to do that.  They loved it!

    You think this is a lot of stockings?  Wait until we add three more people next year!

Hailey holds up some princess shoes she got from Uncle Vince.

Hailey & Laura open "Leapsters" they got from Grammy & Poppy.

Hailey opens a karaoke machine from Grammy & Poppy!

And entertains us with a song!

Uncle Vince teaches the girls how to play the guitar.

"Amazing Grace" Verse 1- You may need to turn your volume up on the computer to hear it!