Oh our Christmas forset

We have 4 trees this year.  Yup four and honestly I am surprised it is not more.  Four very different tress.  Let me introduce you to them.

Family Tree

This is our live tree, the beautiful concolor fir we cut and put up.



This is a beautiful tree that does not smell as much as I expected but I could not imagine not having a live tree in our home.  It has red, white and green warm LED lights on it.    Strung with red beads and adorned with red bows.  Simple, sweet and beautiful.

For years we have basically done this.  Get a tree and decorate it in a color theme with ornaments that we move up the tree, the closer it gets to Christmas.  But they are always so beautiful.  We do it this way for many reasons.

Snowman Tree
I saw this idea on pinterest because I am in no way that creative and I just love it!



I think he turned out great!  He might make a yearly appearance.  Although I have so many other ideas that I want to do with that white tree.  I had always wanted one and now I have one but I went with adorably fantastic snowman this year because of my young family.  It was the perfect choice they love it too.

Family Ornament Tree
Since I was born my mom and aunt have collected yearly ornaments for me and my kids too.  She always decorated our family tree with them growing up.  Each year one by one we would put our special memories on the tree, like a hallmark movie.  She gave me most of them a few years back and I almost never take them out.  Sometimes I might have used a few in decorating but for the most part they stayed in the box.  This year we got another tree.  I put it up and thought okay lets put out all those family ornaments on this rather spacey and bare tree.  We decorated it in colored LED lights, the disco lights from years past.  And the kids started decorating it.



They put up years of memories.  Of mine and and they looked for the ornaments with their names too.



Some of the ornaments are old and not replaceable, which is why I never put them out.  I know my crew to well.



And they did not disappoint me.



Within hours ornaments started being pulled off and played with and broke.  Some I can fix some are gone forever.  Only to be followed in the next few days...



Oh yeah they pulled the whole thing down.  Luckily it fell on a carpet and a just a few broke that time.

For a few minutes it looked like this..





UGH.  I don't know if I will try this again next year or wait till they are older.  Much older.

It is fun having a forest in the house we need no night lights because it glows so much.



And the 4th tree is in my sons room but I never got a picture of that.

Getting our tree

We trekked back out on our Christmas tree hunt again this year.  Through the multiple choices  the Christmas tree farm has to offer.



We never know what type of tree we are looking for we just walk or run to we find the right one.





The kids just love to run run run and this year luckily it was not snowing but it was pretty darn cold.  Maybe next year Gracie will be able to run along too but for now she was pushed up and down the hills of trees.  She much would have rather been running.



You would think she would be safer in the stroller but no.  Her dad was pushing her and let go of the stroller on top of a hill to take a picture .  He said he parked it but the next thing I knew was a guy from 200 yards away was screaming to get our attention because the stroller was rolling down the hill.  I was further down it and able to catch our baby who probably thought it was a fun ride.  Luckily she was safe.  It never crashed or tipped over.  Whew.



This year Gregory was the tagger.  And we finally found our tree.


Although I don't think that was is actually it, more of a practice tag?



Ah there it is this one is it!  It is a beautiful concolor fir.



After we tag it we flag down the woodcutter and he get our tree for us.



He throws it on his trailer back to the barn where they shake it, to get off all the lose needles and wrap it for easy transportation and putting it up.



And it is ours.  A beautiful tree for 2013.

Twas the night before Christmas

And all through the house, the children were crazy, they scared the mouse.  They woke in the morning with excitement and cheer, knowing that Christmas would soon be here.
First on there list was to open a gift from there Grandma Ginny, each year with more kids she has to send so many.  Smiley got a car Tow Mater, he drove it all day and later.





Gregory got a wii game so much fun, Monster Hunter he has them on the run.



Evan opened legos this one not from Grandma Ginny, hundreds of pieces I will be vacumeing up so many.



Now Princess Faith opened a singing panda bear, she was dancing to the music and brother wanted to share.





5 minutes later when the gift opening was done we headed to the kitchen for some more fun.  It was time to bake, and then to the neighbors home the cookies we wold take.



Dozen upon dozen we made, working for hours in the kitchen never being paid.



We made chocolate chip, chocolate chocolate chip and best of all sugar cookies with lots of icing.  We ate as we made them they were to enticing.  For Santa and his reindeer there were so many, we hooked him up to erase the bad times because with 3 boys there can be plenty.





While we were cooking under the table hid an elf, red and cute it could be none else, than our sweetest girl so kissable and cute, but there for handouts for that delicious sugary food.



The baking was done, the cookies were made, as the day went on all the children played.  The loved their new toys, and together they wondered about Santa and when would he come, would he come down the chimney?  Or through the door?  They though about the presents he would bring them because they wanted more.

But have the boys been good or were they bad?  We were glued to the computer watching Santa on NORAD.  He flew to Russia, he flew to Fiji, he flew over oceans, continents, islands and more.  We watched and waited for soon he would be at our chimney or door.

Waiting the children never grew tired, we cuddled up and watched movies but nothing worked.  The were as excited as ever and the hour was late, they needed to go to bed and it had been all momma could take.  I sent them to bed but they did not stay.  I told them you better go to sleep or Santa won't stop with his sleigh.

Finally asleep I begun my work wrapping presents should have been left to the elfs.  Because I was up past 1 AM and tired myself.  But eventually it got done and the stocking filled and hung.



It was a glorious night the room was glowing, and the was a sea of presents blessings overflowing.



So many packages!  So many gracious family and friends.  We are truly blessed and I was thankful the evening was at its end.  For now I could go to sleep and rest my head  I quickly fell asleep cuddling my princess in bed.

As we slept the boys swore they heard him he thumped on the roof and never was in sight but then flew off exclaiming  "Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!"\

Christmas Tree 2011

Whew is it really now 14!!!! days left till Christmas.  14,  Fourteen , 4 + 10, wow.  Are you ready I am not.  I am close but not quite ready.  I hope that by the conclusion of this weekend I will be done with all the fluff stuff.  As far as the family stuff well check we have been doing that everyday.  So much so it keeps me a little to busy to blog right now.  As I am writing this my son is standing next to me with a list of activities he wants to do this weekend.  Saying "mom lets get to it!"

One of my favorite traditions that we do everyday, but Wednesday nights because of AWANAS, is winding down our day.  The kids and I all cuddle together on the coach and watch what ever Christmas show is on that night.  They never complain and never ask to change the channel.  The other night the movies were from the 1970's and they watched the whole time.  They can be rowdy and all I have to say is time to watch a Christmas  show and they will switch it to it and settle down.  

After the movie is over they do their chocolate advent calender.  They love countdowns.  So not only do we have 1 advent calender we 2.  They have a Santa that we have been turning the blocks counting down since September.  How exciting that it is getting so close.  They do the Santa one every morning and the chocolate one at night.  Next year I might have to get a more involved advent one.  I have seen some great ideas of ones with activities not chocolate and I know my children would like those ones the best.  However I do love my creative boys.  The chocolate is in a different shape everyday.  After they open it and break the chocolate in half sharing it between the 2 oldest, (their own idea not mine!) they make up a story about what the chocolate was.  It is often influenced by what movie we just watched and it is darling.  For instance they had a squirrel the other day and they were making up a story about the squirrel helping Santa.  I give the wonderful credit to my kids school for this.  What a great school and the thinking they encourage and nurture.

December has been cold.  Like it should be if you regretfully live in Pennsylvania.  It is in the upper 70's in the Florida Keys right now, just saying.  I would be more than happy to trade in my evergreen for a palm tree.  But before the weather turned, before it got cold, before no one would want to go,  we went out a got our tree.  We went out the Saturday after Thanksgiving.  We went back to our favorite place to get Christmas trees.  We got our tree there last year and had they best time.  Despite the fact it was flurrying, dark and just so cold.  But this year we went out in the morning on a warm day to the cheers of my children.

The farm is large we walked up and down the isle of trees.  Everyone was picking out a different tree.  Last year we got the all time best and most beautiful tree how could we top it.  We did not need to.  We just needed to find the best and most beautiful one for this year.  We looked and poised next to so many.  All different shapes and sizes.

We were looking for more of a small one this year.  No more than 6 feet and not as wide.  I did not care what they picked any would be fine.

We stopped and took a few pictures trying to get that one for a Christmas card.  A few is an understatement, more like a hundred.  Any of you with kids know how that went but we managed to get one...

One where no one is crying, picking there nose, looking anywhere else, hitting their brother, anything.

Eventually we found the tree.  We tagged it and so the guy came.  He chain sawed it down.  Which scared poor baby Faith.

He threw it on the wagon and took it back to the barn.  There they shook off the excess needles.

And wrapped it for us.  Smiley thinks watching the whole process is just the greatest.  He was so excited.  Such a joy at Christmas or anytime.

They even through it in the truck for us.

I found our latest addition there for just $3!  I love him such a cute snowman.  And $3 all hand made you can't beat that.  We were more than happy to take him home.

We quickly got it up and it looked great.  And our new snowman is enjoying his new home.

I strung many many many light on it.  We went colored this year.  Then the boys covered it in  so many balls you can no longer see the green tree but that is what they want.

Now it is up and we have our 2011 Christmas tree.  They balls have begun to be pulled off the bottom.  They are slowly making there way up top.  We sorta new this would happen.  After all we have had 3 babies at Christmas before her.  

She gets into everything as she is fully crawling around causing chaos.  She loved the lights too.  We don't mind we just love her so much.

Now we have our 3/4 decorated tree of 2011!  And another great memory of the Christmas tree.