Christmas Morning!

Emma Taylor was up at 7:15am and I let her wake Harrison up so they could check out what Santa brought.  It didn't take much to wake Harrison up.  Emma Taylor said, "Santa came!" and he shot up in his bed and hit the ground running!

Emma Taylor and her new American Girl, Samantha.

Harrison on his new scooter.

Christmas morning fun...

We played with the new toys for awhile and then headed to Granna and Papa D's house for our traditional PJ brunch!

Christmas Eve

We had a busy Christmas Eve!  We started our day with brunch at Aunt Bonnie and Uncle Harold's house (of course, I forgot my camera!).  Bonnie makes THE BEST white sausage gravy!  She had every breakfast food you could imagine and lots of wonderful treats too.  She always has a special table set for the kids...complete with cupcakes and cookies from Creative Cakes!  All four of the kids were in heaven!

On Christmas Eve Granna and Papa D came over for dinner.  Emma Taylor wanted it to be fancy, so she decided to make place cards! 

Here's my crafty girl!

After dinner we made reindeer food...yummy oatmeal with red and green sparkly sugar.  The reindeer can see the sparkles so they'll know to stop by our house for a bite!

It was raining outside so the kids just poured their food off the porch.

Posing with Granna and Papa D

We left treats for Santa, hopped in our PJs and hoped Santa would make his way to our house! 

Gingerbread

The kids have been asking to decorate their gingerbread house since they got out of school last week.  Well they were finally able to tackle the task last night.  They had a good time, but I think they enjoyed eating the candy and licking the icing more than the actual decorating!

Here's their masterpiece!

School Christmas Parties

The kids were busy with school Christmas parties this week.  They had fun exchanging gifts and eating all the Christmas goodies!

Emma Taylor's class had a Christmas breakfast, so they all brought their favorite breakfast treats.  Emma Taylor took yummy cinnamon rolls to share with her class!

Emma Taylor and Maddie

more classmates

 

Her class made these cute ornaments!

Harrison's party was lots of fun too!

Harrison and Isaac

Harrison took his Polar Express bell for Show & Tell.

We're all partied out!

Christmas with Granna and Papa D

We had our family Christmas at Granna and Papa D's house yesterday.  The six of us were there and Ben's family was there too, so we had a full house!  We had a really good time and thankfully mom took some pictures!

all the kids

all six of us

the whole gang

Thanks Granna and Papa D!  We had fun!

The Polar Express

Lee and I took the kids to Calera, AL last night to take a ride on the Polar Express.  The kids have been excited about this trip for weeks and it was well worth the wait.  Here they are getting ready to board the train in their matching PJs.

The conductor punched our tickets and we hopped on the train!  We rode on the Frisco Coach, which was built in 1910.  It was really old, but newly upholstered and decorated beautifully for Christmas.

with the conductor

a few family shots...

The ride started with a reading of the Polar Express.  We brought our own copy of the book so we could follow along.  Not long after we finished the book we ended up at the North Pole where Santa Claus and his elves came on board to greet us. 

The kids LOVED visiting with Santa and Mrs. Claus!

While we were stopped they played Christmas music and we sang Christmas carols.  The kids even danced!

Finally the part the kids had all been waiting for....the cookies and chocolate milk!  Lee and I had to admit, those cookies were pretty yummy!

Before we all got off the train, we all received our silver bells....just like the boy in the book.

The kids loved every minute of their trip on the Polar Express. I'm so glad we were able to make it to the North Pole this Christmas!

Christmas in Cotton Plant

We took the kids to see the lights and all the Christmas inflatables in Cotton Plant tonight.  This was our first trip and we all loved it!

Countdown to Christmas...just 14 days left!

This was Harrison's favorite...Thomas!

We all about froze to death since it was just 26 degrees outside, but it was a ton of fun!

The pictures don't do this place justice...there are lights and decorations EVERYWHERE!

Sitting with Santa

We finally made it to the mall to see Santa tonight.  We had to wait awhile, but I think the kids all agree that it was worth the wait!

They all asked Santa for lots of gifts....hope they're all being nice!

Letters to Santa

This week the kids decided it was time to write their letters to Santa!  Emma Taylor is old enough to do hers without help, but I took a little dictation for Harrison. 

Harrison brainstorming

Harrison's Letter to Santa

Emma Taylor's enjoying some hot chocolate while she writes her letter.

Emma Taylor's letter to Santa

We had a fun time writing our letters to Santa....hope they make it to the North Pole soon!

Trimming the Tree

The kids always get excited when it's time to decorate the Christmas tree.  Lee gets the tree set up, we get the lights in place and then let the kids take over.  So much fun!

 

They are pretty happy with their progress...but now it's time for bed.  I'll post pictures of the finished project later!

Shoe-peg Corn Casserole

I made this casserole at Thanksgiving and it went over pretty well with the family.  Karen asked for the recipe so I thought I'd post it.  It's a rich and creamy casserole and is SUPER easy to make!

Shoe-peg Corn Casserole

• 2 cans shoe-peg corn (drained)
• 1/2 pint whipping cream
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 stick butter

Melt butter (in the microwave) in a large bowl and whisk in flour and whipping cream.  Add corn and mix well.  Pour into a casserole dish and bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes.  Can't get much easier than this!

I found out yesterday that my dad reads my blog (i know, i was surprised too!) and was disappointed that I hadn't posted anything new lately.  I have pictures to be uploaded, but just haven't had a chance to do it this week.  Hey Dad, I hope to get caught back up this weekend so check back soon!  :)

We're off to see the Wizard...

the wonderful Wizard of Oz!  That's what Emma Taylor has been singing for days - she's been so excited! 

Mom and I took Emma Taylor to see the Wizard of Oz performance tonight and she loved it!  She'd seen the movie before so she knew the story was good, but she said she liked it much better in COLOR! 

The show didn't start until 7:30pm, which is just 15 minutes before Emma Taylor's regular bedtime, so I was afraid she'd sleep through most of it.  Thankfully she made it until about 9pm before she gave it up for a nap.  Mom and I were able to stay awake for the whole show...we LOVED it!