Merry Christmas!

I am writing this post on my new iPad! A super surprise from my sweet hubby!

All Aboard the Polar Express!!

Every year we have a little Christmas celebration with our friends the Andersons! Sometimes we just get together, other times the kids make and decorate cookies. This year our plan all along was for the kids to decorate cookies, watch Polar Express and have hot chocolate. Because of family obligations on both sides we opted to have snacks, hot chocolate and watch Polar Express and for the children to have a gift exchange. Wednesday we all gathered at our house to the festivities!

Sydney playing Santa. She has had that Santa hat since she was 2 and in daycare at the YMCA. They had a precious performance and Sydney played and sang Jingle Bells. All of the 2 year old babies had little instruments and they were so cute and amazingly cooperative. Sydney has been in love with being on stage since then:)

 A Narnia movie and stuffed zebra as well as a Bambi necklace and ring...Sydney loves all of her gifts

 Preston, relaxing and watching the movie...he's always the only boy but he handles it well.

Except when he gets the giggles...it was so funny to watch him cracking up...don't remember why now.

Shelby watching the movie very quietly and got up to sit by mom during the parts she didn't like.

 We did get our hot chocolate, homemade fudge, chocolate chip cookies and other goodies.  Robin and I have had so much fun over the years watching our kids grow and their friendships blossom and change over the years.This has been a wonderful tradition.

My shopping is all finished and I have a ton of things to wrap...off to work.

Merry Christmas!

So much for my posting every day in November! It has been busy around here. We finished up with school Friday and Saturday was Sydney's Christmas dance recital. Anyway, the tree is up and decorated but the middle section of lights went out and I am not taking it apart. My tree is 26 years worth of decorations and it is quite the collection...very eclectic...see what I mean..

A Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer that my daughter made.

 I found out I was pregnant in December 1999 and a dear friend gave me this Old World ornament to commemorate a special time in my life and of course Y2K..

 This is one of a set of 2 ornaments my paternal grandparents gave me many years ago. The mate was broken several years ago.

 I bought these plastic crystal ornaments in 1985 on a shopping trip with my new step-daughter Courtnay who was 6 at the time. She picked these out and every year I remember the fun time we had. She and I took to each other immediately.

I just had to include Jack! I have a couple of these but this one is my favorite...makes me smile. I'm sure that my mother is proud!

 These are the Justin ropers my husband bought when we first married...Sydney loves these boots.

 Red berries hanging from the copper on my pot rack...

My Southern living tree on top of a little quilt my grandmother made when she was in her mid-eighties. It is also covering up the table that I have half way started to refinish.Both of my grandmothers were excellent seamstresses but my mother's mom, had arthritis in her hands and she had to give it up but she was very talented. I will share my baby dress someday but I'm not sure if the detail will show up.

That's about  it. We have plans to get together with our friends "The Andersons" tomorrow for a little gift exchange and to watch polar express and drink hot chocolate...should be fun. Thursday is Chuck E. Cheese with Taryn, her sister Holyn and her sweet mama Jessica.

Linking with Wow Us Wednesdays

Merry Christmas!