Christmas with Friends

Sunday night we had our annual Christmas celebration with the Durst and Whitworth families at our house. It's always fun, and a little crazy, when these seven kiddos get together. It's amazing, though, how well they really do all get along. We are so thankful for such wonderful friends!

The "big" kid table

Jackson, Hayden, Madalyn, & Caleb

The "little" kid table, with Luke refusing to even look in my direction.

Harper, Kathryn, & Luke

 Now that they are old enough to all understand If you smile and look at the camera we can open presents, group shots are getting better! 

Caleb & Jackson

Caleb and Madalyn

(When I see this picture I immediately remember them as babies laying on a blanket on the floor...I can imagine it like it was yesterday.) 

Madalyn got right to work using her new craft supplies and made us a "thank you" card.

And Caleb got right to work on his new crazy Play Doh set.

Meanwhile, the other little ones were playing some games of Don't Break the Ice. I LOVE this picture. Apparently Jackson was telling Luke a thing or two... ;)

It's Beginning to Look A Lot...

LIKE CHRISTMAS!!!

We had our first Christmas celebration last Thursday night at Grandma Kathy's new house! It was the first time that we've all been there since she got moved in and we even helped her finish decorating her tree. Of course, the kiddos were super excited about the PRESENTS! 

School Christmas Program

Last week Caleb participated in his "All School" Christmas program. Little brother and I sat in the back row since it was close to his bedtime so I had another parent snap a few pictures for me with my camera. Kindergarten sang with the 1st and 2nd graders and they did great. I loved hearing their sweet little singing voices!

Most of Caleb's class

A Snow Day

Last Friday we had our first snow day of this school year, and it happened to be on one of my work days too! We had freezing rain and sleet all morning and then the snow started that afternoon. We spent the day watching movies, decorating baked goods, and enjoying some Chinese takeout- Caleb's favorite. 

As soon as the freezing rain stopped, Caleb ran outside and started eating icicles off the deck- silly boy! (Yes, Caleb is wearing his rain boots. He has snow boots on order and they should be here next week!)

Later that morning we made our first gingerbread house. I found out very quickly that a hot glue gun is a must when it comes to gingerbread houses, as we didn't have the patience to let the icing dry. (And it was painful to watch the sides collapse as soon as we let go!)

Proud of our finished gingerbread house. 

Caleb put the wreath on the front door- I always love his extra touches.

That afternoon while Luke napped, Caleb and I drank hot chocolate and made gingerbread cookies.

The boys had fun decorating them, but neither really liked the cookie. Luke actually refused to eat it! 

Caleb said he needed to crush his cookie up in a bowl of ice cream to make it taste better. I liked his idea!

On Saturday and Sunday we played outside in the snow. There were snowball fights and lots of sledding trips down the small hill behind our house. 

This was the funniest scene...Luke kept piling snow up on the electrical box, only to have his friend Jake brush it all off. Hilarious! 

(Yes, Luke is still in his pjs. He has snow bibs on order and they should be here next week as well!)

We are sure hoping for a white Christmas this year!

Thanksgiving Program

Before Thanksgiving break, Caleb's class put on a little program. There were lots of songs, memorized Bible verses, and each student had a line to say. Caleb's line- We are thankful for each new day the Lord gives us to praise His name. 

Caleb & Mrs. Keeton

(We are so thankful for her!)

A Challenge

Our dress up bin is emptied daily, as these two love to get in character. Recently Luke has decided that he needs his Daniel Boone cap under his Louisville River Bats helmet, while he rides his horse. While Caleb likes to wear entire costumes, he's happy with a simple mask. This day he decided to be a ninja.

Here is your challenge...See if you can watch this video without laughing.

By the way, I see these dance moves almost daily!

Thanksgiving Dinner

We had an amazing meal at my great-aunt and great-uncle's house for Thanksgiving this year. I think there were just under 60 people there, yet there was plenty of food...despite the number of us that filled our plates for a second time. ;)  

We are so, so incredibly thankful for our family!

The boys with Uncle Mark...no one could get Luke to smile!

Some of the "Hume" cousins- Paige, Adam, Kyle, Caleb, Emma, and Zach

The Hume Family 

(Luke was still so thrilled to be involved in pictures.)

With Grandmom, Grandpa, Aunt Paige, and Uncle Luke

(We totally bribed Luke at this point...he got to play with a stick if he stood still for the picture!)

And, I got my hands on this precious one- our new cousin Ella! 

Baby It's Cold Outside

It may have been 23 degrees outside (seriously!) but these guys were as happy as could be. 

Why you may not get a Christmas card this year...

One Word: Luke

Our Thanksgiving Break

For the first time since before Caleb was born, we spent Thanksgiving in Louisville. While it was nice not to have to travel, we sure missed seeing family!

To kick off the long break, I took this sweet kid to breakfast at Chickfila on our way to school. While he doesn't normally eat a big breakfast at home, he chowed down there. 

Luke had this tent in our living room for about two days straight. He loved it- playing, watching tv, and eating snacks in there. 

We also spent lots of time with family over the break!

Caleb L-O-V-E-S the song "10,000 Reasons" by Matt Redman and watches the Youtube video daily.  He wants to sing it on stage with a microphone and even decided that he wants to name his son Matt Redman someday. ;) Well, apparently little brother likes the song too... I could hear him up in Caleb's room singing and tried to capture a little.