Once again, we sent AND received many Christmas Cards (ours doubled as a birth announcement too). (Sorry for the picture of a picture...too lazy to hook up my scanner.) It's so great to keep in touch with so many people!
I LoVe that sweater and his little boy 'baby legs' (NO they're NOT tights, hehe!)
Cheater Christmas: {noun}, a description of a Christmas that is celebrated early, for one reason or another. Example: The Jefferies' had a cheater Christmas in 2010 because they did NOT want to lug ALL the gifts from Oregon to Utah and back.
Every year since moving to Oregon we have stayed in Oregon for Christmas. It has been nice and relaxing to spend the time with our lovely little family. Two years ago (was that ALREADY two years ago?!? I do sometimes wish that I could rewind and go back to then...when I first found out I was pregnant with Elsa.) Brent requested the time off so we could travel back to visit our extended family in Utah for Christmas. But then we had our great winter freeze...and decided it would be wise to stay home. So when this year Brent got his work schedule and saw that he was given a week off around Christmas without even requesting it, we decided to give the trip another shot (weather permitting).
I was at first very dismayed that we were planning a cheater Christmas. It just wouldn't be the same. Christmas morning would be sad with no presents, right? And I was also sad because Brent told the boys the truth about Santa Clause (WARNING: Santa spoilers ahead!) He was sick of them assuming that they could ask for whatever they wanted for Christmas and expect to get it. Some items on their list were getting ridiculous and pricey, but when we pointed that out they would say "well nobody has to buy it because Santa just brings it for us!". Brent wanted them to know where the gifts really come from and he wanted them to appreciate the time and hard work that WE put in to pay for those gifts. The boys were surprised, as they still totally believed in Santa (which was magical). But despite my worries, our Christmas was even MORE magical with the truth because of our greater appreciation for each other and for Jesus Christ, the true reason for Christmas.
Cheater Christmas Eve:
The boys had their pictures taken in front of the tree
 |
| sad Ollie :*( |
 |
| Baby's First Christmas |
We drank peppermint tea by the fireplace and listened to Christmas music on the ol' record player
Then the boys went to bed, the gifts were set out and the stockings filled
Cheater Christmas Morning (December 23):
Some of the boys' favorite gifts: a couple of Wii games, rumba watches, cloud b aroma sleep pillow pets...AND They Might Be Giants 1)Here come the 123's 2)Here come the ABC's 3) Here comes science
Oh yeah...Ollie got a couple of gifts too (nothing too special...just a couple of new baby toys)
And then, and then, and then...Brent opened a gift which was wrapped up for both of us!
He always guesses what I'm getting him...so I tried to trick him up. I left open a window on Amazon.com of family tents (which we do need). But then when he opened it, he was VERY surprised to find:
That I bought us both WET SUITS!!!! YAY!
Hello Oregon coast! We can't wait to swim in your ocean!!
As if the wet suits weren't enough, I got new gloves and a hat...and one of my very favorite movies of ALL TIME!
And some really sweet kid gifts!
Oh I love my family!
Merry Cheater Christmas!
Then we picked up and left for Utah...
1 comments:
Wetsuit picture-Hilarious!! And seriously Ollie is getting so big, and so stinkin cute! He just keeps getting cuter and cuter. Once he's sitting up (and the weather warms up) we definitely need to do another photo shoot of him. I'm glad you guys had a great Christmas. I need to get busy and catch up my blog (there's just so much to catch up, I'm overwhelmed!)