Sunday, December 25, 2011

Merry Christmas!

This year's Christmas has been wonderful in our family. We attended Christmas Eve services and everyone behaved very well (sometimes a challenge). The kids came home after dinner at my parents' and went straight to sleep. They needed to make sure they were sleeping well before Santa arrived.

Matthew was the first child awake this morning. He was up around 5:15 am. Normally, I would have sent him back to bed and told him it was too early but we had a special friend coming at 6 so I had to get up in 15 minutes anyway. I made him wait until 5:30 and then let him wake Jacob up so they could explore their Santa gifts together. Both boys have been good this year so their stockings were full. The only glitch is that the firetruck Matthew got was broken. Luckly, I know a store in the area that carries them and we will try to exchange it tomorrow. Other than that everyone got what they wanted. My brother even bought us an XBox 360 Kinnect so Jacob is no longer the only child in his day care class that doesn't have a video game system. Of course, I had more fun with it this afternoon than he did. Not to mention I got a good workout jumping while river rafting and playing a little football.

Our little friend, Aidan, spent the holiday with us as well since his mom had to work. It was nice having an extra kid around to enjoy. He kept sneaking under the tree and opening gifts when we weren't looking (he's only 2 1/2) which actually made it a little more fun. Of course, there were some presents for him as well so he had his own gifts to unwrap and enjoy.

We are now relaxing while the frozen pizza finishes cooking. Then we will probably watch the Packers beat the Bears and secure home field advantage for the playoffs (hopefully). I can't think of a better way to end Christmas (unless you are a Bears fan).

Monday, December 19, 2011

Christmas Fun

I am trying to get the pictures and video to upload but am experiencing technical difficulties.

Christmas so far this year has been a lot of fun. One of the great things about being a parent is that you get to watch the fun of the holidays through children's eyes and enjoy new experiences every year as they grow. Even on the most difficult days at work, I can know that I will get to see my children in just a few hours.

Jacob and Matthew did a great job in their holiday performances. They both loved singing and Matthew's class had the most fun version of Go Tell It On The Mountain I have seen in a very long time. The song just fit the kids outgoing personalities and was a lot of fun to watch. I am really hoping I will find a way to get it to upload here soon.

Jacob is really loving all of the new activities he is old enough to participate in. I am having trouble keeping him to just one activity but so far I have held my ground. I am a strong believer that children really don't need to be overscheduled and I also am aware that I have a tendency to overschedule all of us. Right now Jacob has started karate lessons and really loves it. Karate is also great at teaching self-confidence and self-control. I like that it is an individual sport so he isn't competing against anyone but himself to get better.

This school year is really flying by. The kids have learned a lot and are doing great in all of their activities. We recently went to see the holiday trains. I was a little saddened to realize that Jacob is beginning to outgrow them but we still had fun. At the same time, I am excited to take him to the Milwaukee Public Museum over winter break. He will be old enough to really enjoy it and learn something.

So hopefully I can get some pictures uploaded soon.