Christmas 2011

Merry Christmas!

Here are lots of shots (a.k.a cleaning out the camera) from our Christmas- hope yours was just as happy.

Getting our teacher gifts ready. Helen Claire helped me make homemade gingerbread and monogrammed cookies jars (thank you Pinterest) for her teachers. She was serious about her cookie rolling skills.

Helen Claire tried her best to teach Mickey Mouse and Pig about the Nativity. Apparently, they were not very good listeners. Mickey had to take a dose of medicine and they both had to go to time-out :)

Right after the time-out, we got on the road headed to my mother's house. We got there late on the 23rd and celebrated Christmas Eve with everyone the next day. Oh, and Helen Claire had her second haircut on the 23rd before we left town. You'll be able to tell her hair is freshly cut in these next shots...

We changed into PJs and tried to wind down a little bit...

There were no pictures (out of the ton that we took) where everyone was looking at the camera, or at the right camera. So, I'm going with a funny one. Props to Bryce, though... in every single shot, he was looking square into the camera.

After the party, we headed to Jonathan's parents' to spend the night and get ready for Christmas morning.

This little doll bed/bath center was mine when I was little. With the help of Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, it's as good as new.

I found this table on Craigslist for $15, and Jonathan chalkboard painted the top. Granny made the chair covers out of the leftover party decorations from HC's first birthday.

Last year, I spelled her initials in the ABC blocks, so I tried to keep the tradition going this year.

Helen Claire loves to color and play babies, so these were her favorite gifts, plus they were special to us! She got some other, practical gifts too, like cups and bowls and toothpaste and books.

She was very sleepy when we got her up. We had to wake her up since we were going to the Christmas service at church, and she was a little out of it. It took a while for her to realize that there was new stuff to play with.

After presents and breakfast, we headed to church. Baby got to go with us, and Helen Claire wore her dress from Ms. Phoebe's. We love the face she is making in the next picture. If she hugs you real tight, she says "Awww" and that's what she's doing to baby here.

After church, it was back to my mother's for more presents. Helen Claire got real ballerina gear, and she modeled for us!

She also got a new suitcase and lots of free makeup bags, which was great because she was very entertained by opening, closing, zipping, unzipping, clicking and unclicking the straps... good for quiet play and fine motor development :)

Plus, they are good for peek-a-boo!

We went to Granny and Pa's later...

Helen Claire found out that life with a new baby is hard work.

She got even more presents

and even a car from this cute boy, his brother, and mama. Thank you Newt, Josh and Aunt Laurie.

I guess Helen Claire was a little over it with the pictures for the day. She eventually gave up all together and just started talking to Aunt T and Uncle...

and offering Lala a sip of baby doll milk.

Mother and Aunt Laurie never like any pictures, but I hope they will be ok with me posting this one. They both look really pretty and they have good smiles, even if they are aimed at different cameras.

Aunt Laurie with her Christmas baby. Josh was in Texas again this year, but we talked to him and made sure he knew we loved him and missed him.

The next day, we headed back to Jonathan's parents' to swap gifts with Brandi, Chris and the children. We attempted a group picture again... poor Helen Claire. She wasn't too sure about "relaxing" with the big kids. She looks a little stiff :)

Right after this picture with Aunt Brandi, my camera died, so I don't have any pictures of the kids opening gifts, but Helen Claire had fun and so did we. It's always funny to watch her interact with cousins on Jonathan's side, since she is the only baby/kid on my side.

We went back over to Pa and Granny's to play and spend time with Newt. Newt is a good sport because all of his tall self sat in that little teeny chair to color with HC. You made her day, Newtie.

Fun fact about Granny... see all those tubs in the picture? Yeah, she's putting up her Christmas decorations- one day after Christmas. She means business about it, too. And, in all her "free time" that day, she managed to whip up this little number to match the chair covers- complete with a pocket on the front to hold crayons or chalk. If you need something done, call Granny. She is good.

The rest of our time at home was calmer than our first couple of days. We spent a lot of time with our families, and spent too much time eating and drank way too much coffee. As with anything else in life, there was a mix of joy and pain this visit. There is so much heartache, for lots of reasons that aren't mine to share, and for lots of people, families and friends that I love. Knowing you can't take away someone's hurt is hard. It.is.so.hard. I'm glad we were able to be home- and just be there.

In the spirit of just being, these pictures aren't the best quality, but they are our real life. (So real, in fact, that you are probably sick of this bunny onesie. It's in all of our recent posts. Can you tell it's her favorite "hop hop" shirt?). Helen Claire needed to get out some energy (can you say overtired!!!). She jumped her little heart out on the bed in my old bedroom. And she was just so happy.

Happiness to you today, too- Merry Christmas.