christwish 2008

each year, my family celebrates christmas a bit earlier than most everyone else. we do this because every year around this time, we pack our scarves, coats, burt's bees lip balms, and christmas gifts to make the short plane ride home to michigan!

so a few days before we made out jaunt to freezing cold (got around 7inches of snow today, it is 9 degrees right, and beautifully white) michigan-we celebrated christwish. santa makes a special trip to out house on chriswish, where stuffs the the kid's stocking full of dinosaurs, m&m's, candy canes, a new box of crayons, painting supplies, new travel toys, a few bucks, whoopee cushions (hey, they love them), lipgloss, pencil bags, an orange (tradition)...lots of fun !!!stuff

right after i read the kids , the night before christmas for the 100th time this year, it was more special tonight. peyton's worried little face that we don't have a chimney.

"how will he get in the house, mommy?"

"sweetheart, santa can do anything. i pinky promise, he will come tonight when you are sleeping!"

(excited face) "well, can i stay up and wait for santa?"

"nope."

this went on for a while and then i realized she was stalling. tonight was sweet and exciting and i never ever want to forget the looks on their little innocent faces...!

tonight was made up of exactly what i am pretty sure many parents of older children wish they could get back. this reality hits me hard tonight, like it does more and more often now, but especially with big events like this one.

jeff and i ran around, getting things ready...perfect. we became santa's elves, singing along together to the christmas tunes playing in the background, scurrying like mice wrapping, bowing, making, planning, dreaming...

for the first time, we did a...follow the string gift, for the BIG gift!

we made sure santa knew we had been learning all about him and how he does things to make christmas so special.

we made santa cookies, milk, a note to read...

oooh's and aaahhhh's followed by, "look, SANTA came!!!" beckham just lauhghed because he doens't really get it yet, but his sister was excited, so why not join in!!!!

my favorite shot of the morning! look at peyton's face over unwrapping the gift she wanted the MOST...rollerskates. gido's face is so happy for her too and i'm just gettin' my picture taken...clueless!!!

beckham's new rollerskates! he loves to do whatever peyton does, so this was an important gift!

thank you, gido!

christmas morning loves!

last surprise...following the string...

a new market! it turns into a lemonade stand as well. i know we will get so much use from this. i have been sooo excited to play with them. although, the produce in our house costs a lot of money, my last banana purchase was 40 million dollars, FOR ONE BANANA!!!! it is so worth it to see them play and learn counting money, interacting, pretending! i could listen to it all day long.

one christmas down and one more to go!!!! we have a couple of days until our next celebration, and until then we will be baking cookies, making food, buliding snowmen, making snow angles, sledding, seeing family, dressing up,...just plain having fun. knowing how lucky we are and being reminded of it every single day!!!

we know that some people are not as fortunate. i try to make peyton understand how lucky she is to have a warm house to live in, good food to eat, and a family who loves her more than anything in the whole world. we say our prayers everynight, we pray for other people, other children.

*tonight, when we were saying our prayers together, she asked me if she could give one of her presents to a, "children without any toys." bestill my heart. she is a sweet little girl that has reminded me not to only pray for others, but to do for others less fortunate. so we will together, do something meaningful for someone else this holiday season.*

merry christmas to all and to all a goodnight.

xoxoxoxo

today i will be happier than a bird with a french fry...

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=18721894

today will be a really good day! i love knowing that we will have a great time, make memories, seeing my babies laugh, seeing my husband laugh. knowing i will laugh.

after a super busy week and super busy day...tonight we spent time with dear, dear friends. friends that are family to me. i'm filled up. filled up with babies, giggles, smelly confessions, really good food, christmas spirit done right, good and funny scoop. i am ready to start a new day...love more, be more, do more! that is the kind of people they are. makin' others want to be better. i love them.

my kids were a challenge tonight. i was tired. jeff is tired. i thought when we eventually did get home, i would quickly change the kids into their chrsitmas jammies, tell a quick story, and hurry them to bed. i thought i would do that...but i didn't. instead, i sat and talked to peyton. told her how much i loved her, how proud her father and i are of her. overcoming a doggy fear, paying compliments to others, and giving out hugs. these are the things that i will remember from tonight.

tomorrow is our Christmas celebration that we have coined...Chriswish! we do this each year before we head north to michigan. it gives us a chance to spend some time together with just us as a family. we make cookies for santa, bc he knows we won't be home for christmas day, he makes a special visit here each year before christmas to drop off gifts for peyton and beckham.

jeff and i have wrapped, bowed-up packages, spread out (to make it look like more gifts), put-together, tip-toed, whispered, made a follow-the-string- gift and talked up Chriswish for weeks! it will all be worth it when we get to see their little innocent faces in the morning. i will post pics from this event later.

meanwhile, here are some pictures i took of peyton on a "Girl's Day Out!" just the two of us for lunch, a photo op, and girl talk. i love this girl so much!!!

who do i think i am??? huh? Huh? cute huh?

catching up.

more than a few of my favorite things...

...beckham seeing his 'bebe' and wanting to play with her...

would lily mind if i give her a kiss???

nah. she won't mind.

he did this uncoached for about 10 minutes. beckham is one of the most lovable little guys i have ever known. he is one of my favorite things for sure (and lily too!)

...peyton's sensitivity is endearing, however, it can turn into full-blown hysteria

when gets a time-out.

poor girl thinks she will be there forever.

no worries baby girl, it's just 4 minutes long.

...packed up christmas decorations only to be seen once a year like this picture of jeff and i on our first christmas together...15 YEARS ago!

ha ha. beckham wanting to eat tarts every single time he has access to them. i found this laying on the table and beckham spitting wax out of his mouth.

i love how it looks like he took a bite out of it.

...these two loving on each other the way they do.

...peyton unable to control herself from dancing when happy music is on.

...new friends we adore.

...the way beckham loves his sito...

...and gido.

...the way our stockings look, reminding me that we are family with our own little traditions to share and pass on.

...special little photo ornaments on our tree.

...blue jeans on my little guy!

...walking in and seeing peyton rocking a baby, i mean a GLOW WORM that she 'swaddled' herself. smiling proudly to me, like she knew i have been aching for her to nurture/want/love her own little baby doll like she used to do. her face was priceless. becks ran over to get in on the action. five minutes later, my baby doll bliss was shattered

when i found mr. glow worm thrown to the floor. forgotten. left.

damn. i'll keep trying though:)

...what? i happen to love fish sticks and green beans. i really do find this a treat. i would eat this over a steak any day. weird, i know. i think it's more weird that i took a picture of this.

...potterybarn magazines. love all the ideas-i will do this wall. i wrote it, now i have to do it!

...jeff laughing it up over and over again at dinner.

"jeff, do you think the girls would notice if we left and went to the ale house to watch the game?"

...at donna's place, lucarelli's, enjoying the music and the pizza!

one of my most favorite things to do ever is cook with peyton. i enjoy it so much. she is helpful, eager to learn, and so fun!!! she is learning how to read the measuring cup, sift flour, and most recently...make cut-out cookies! i never want this to end. i picture us years from now, cooking a big family meal together. laughing. loving. enjoying.

i can wait until then. however it is a big dream of mine and until then, we will make our little cookies, sauces, veggies-memories!!!

loving this time of year and all the joy it brings. it is like having a really busy year and needing to recharge your batteries. rest. recoup. this is what the holidays are for me. they fill me up until next year when we start it all over again.

xoxo