12th Day of Christmas

On Christmas Eve, we wanted to thank our “Secret Elves” somehow so we made brownies with peppermint extract and ground candy-cane in them and set them on the porch with a note thanking them.  Their kind gifts they brought everyday really made our first Christmas away from family much more enjoyable as well as fun since we had something to look forward to each night.  That afternoon they left us our final gifts with the note:

“On the Twelfth day of Christmas, my true love sent to me Twelve drummers drumming!…”

This story will spread the true Christmas spirit.  Remember the Christ every time that you hear it!

A Star for the Tree..

The book “The Little Drummer Boy”

They also finished off giving us the rest of the figurines for the nativity as well as the book that the nativity came in.  I am so grateful that they shared their creativity and gifts with us!  This was a Christmas we won’t forget!

11th Day of Christmas

Here’s what was sitting on our porch on the Eve of Christmas Eve:

“On the eleventh day of Christmas my true love sent to me Eleven pipers piping…”

Pipers are scarce so we brought you their kilt, we cut and we tied and we made it a quilt.

It’s a lap blanket…perfect for watching movies as a family with! 

10th Day of Christmas

This movie is what graced our doorstep for the 10th day of Christmas along with the note:

“On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love sent to me Ten lords a-leaping…”

This beautiful ballet is a holiday treat.  Watch these Ladies and Lords as they leap on their feet!

This movie was an interesting surprise.. I didn’t even know there was a Barbie Nutcracker movie (proves I didn’t have a girl yet…).  This actually is now one of Christian’s favorite movies because he loves the prince-nutcracker-solider idea!  Who knew when I let him watch this movie that he’d start dressing up in a cape with his Bermuda shorts and winter boots on waving a sword around…

 

Santa and Snow!

At the nearby park they had a special “Winter Wonderland” party.  It was super fun.  We were able to meet up with some friends from our ward that I had mentioned it to so it was fun to walk around with them.  Christian was really excited to sit on Santa’s lap and tell him (not too quietly) that he wants a Teddy Bear for Christmas!  I’m sure Santa wishes all of his orders could be so simple.  Christian has lots of plush toys  from monkeys to penguins but he only has one little teddy bear he got from his great aunt Melody when he was born.  I think he wants one because most little boys in story books have a teddy bear…. at least it’s not a horse which is what he’s been asking me for!  Santa also gave out candy canes, while the elves nearby passed out free hot cocoa and stickers that said “Jesus Loves Me”…   

The white in the background (sadly) is not real… It’s just a white piece of plastic.

They did however have some snow that they shipped in that morning!

 

We had to ride the train to get to the snow area and Christian was really excited to see it!

First, they let the kids play in the snow pile…it was pretty much dirty ice by then… Jared is in the background of the picture trying to chip away at the snow so that Christian could make snowballs.  Christian was just happy to stand on it!

 

Then they let the kids sled down the hill, it was a pretty good sized hill because Christian slid down so fast this is the only picture I got of him that is discernable…and this is when he was stopping at the bottom!   

 

I’m thinking the amusement park is privately owned…I don’t think people in Utah would dare put up a sign like this without having to worry about a million protesters marching around!

I’m so thankful I got to see some snow…even if it was a perfect day of 72 degrees!

9th Day of Christmas

This 12 days of Christmas gift was the most surprising:   

“On the ninth day of Christmas my true love sent to me Nine ladies dancing…”

Pop yourself so corn, sit by the fire.  Watch ladies snowman dancing!  You’ll never tire!

 

I had never seen this show before but it was one of Jared’s childhood favorites.  We watched it as a family for family time.  The only thing was that Christian cried at the end.  I guess all good things have to come to an end.

8th day of Christmas

Here’s what we received for the 8th day of Christmas!

   

Milk and Cookies! 

This is where I came to the conclusion that this person doesn’t know me too well for two reasons…Number one: Who can wait 5 days to give cookies that are in the house to Santa? The Second reason was less important but noted: Lactose intolerance.  It must be someone I don’t suspect….

7th Day of Christmas

We received a bag with a note on it and a this book in side.  The note reads:

“On the Seventh day of Christmas, my true love sent to me Seven swans a –swimming…”

We hope you like The Trumpet of the Swan, It’s a book about love and courage; it won’t lead you wrong!

What a great idea!  This is one of our families favorite books.  It’s a little silly but it is the first chapter book that Christian had the patience to listen to and we read it while I was sick in bed in the first few months of pregnancy with Vivian.  It is a great gift!