Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Christmas Day!


Christmas 2014

The first few photos epitomize our Christmas season experience.  There has been a little gremlin getting into the tree - but who can blame her? 
It's shiny, it jingles, and she gets a rise out of mom and dad whenever she touches it.

Christmas Eve





Our "Merry Christmas Eve, let's get some pictures together around the tree" session was short lived :)


I believe that Asher was instructed to "sit up straight" before this photo.  That turned out well...





Christmas Day!!


About 3 minutes after coming downstairs, it finally registered that there was a bike in front of the tree! :)


A new bike for Asher and a giraffe chew toy for Everly (designed by a French toymaker, apparently) were the big gifts this year. 

Both were a success!


That sneaky little Elf, Pistachio, lurking in the tree while presents were opened :)


Santa's leftovers... "Santa was hungry!"



She has not put the giraffe down since Christmas... #presentwin




I love Christmas!


Other than Sophia the Giraffe, Everly's second favorite gift were all the bows on all the presents :)




Our traditional Christmas breakfast :)




*Love*




Everly continued to be more interested in the bows than in the presents.



One of Asher's favorite gifts?  The bow and arrows from his Hawkin cousins!  While Everly loved the bows of one variety, Asher was also interested in bows - and he had Hunger-Games-like innate skills with said bow...




He also got a Batcave!  Thanks Grandma and Grandpa.


And while all the presents were lovely, he's apparently still in the stage where all you had to get him was a cardboard box, and we would be just fine!




Sean's decorative touch...


Spiderman mug - Success!


Fortunately, this year our oven didn't break, and we could have dinner on Christmas night :)  Christmas dinner consisted of grilled lamb chops with a balsamic reduction, asparagus, twice baked sweet potatoes and Crescent rolls.  Thank you Sean!!  




Merry Christmas and thank you friends and family for all your love and support.  You all are the best gifts of all!

December and Christmas Craziness


Merry Month of Christmas!!

Here are a few pictures of our random antics during this Christmas season..

We were all ready to go to church when Asher started melting down and then started complaining that his head was hurting.  He'd never done that before, and after finding out that he had a low temperature, Shauna decided we weren't going to waste Everly's Christmas dress, and had Sean take some pictures.






She's standing now!!



On another day, Sean had a cross fit competition on the TV, and Asher got really into it.  A broomstick and two styrofoam blocks helped him was mimick that athletes. :)  

Asher's rippling muscles as he works on his weightlifting skills...



Asher and Shauna were overly proud of their lego building and wanted to keep it alive as long as possible... Everly on the other hand did not share that thought :)


Everly had her first taste of Indian food, and she liked it!!  This was also Sean's first attempt at making Indian food (chicken tikka masala, to be exact), and it was a smashing success!!


We were able to get to Sean's work party, and Santa was there!!  And neither of our kids cried!!  Success again!! We love this Santa, by the way :)




Everly follows her big brother wherever he goes...




She loved the snowmen!!



Asher helping to trim the tree.


Everly helping in her own way...


Asher and Everly - Our Grinch and happy little elf :)  This was Asher's favorite Christmas shirt - he must have worn it to every Christmas event we attended.



We love these two!!  They are awesome!


This little girl is just adorable!



Feliz Navidad - what else needs to be said???? (as you can tell from this picture and past pictures, Asher is not a fan of shirts or pants when we are home - we pick our battles :) )


These two!



Every year we try to make cookies for our family and friends.

Asher was especially proud of his decorating skills this year.




Success!!


This was Asher's special cookie - there must have been 15 M&Ms on it...


Another exciting part of this month was Asher's school Christmas performance!  We were really excited/anxious/apprehensive to see what shenanigans Asher was going to pull and we were not disappointed!!

When we first arrived, before the show started, whose child was already on stage dancing around (on the right side of the stage in the photo below) while his teachers desperately tried to get him back in line?  
That's right - our kid - Asher!!  It was just a preview of what was going to take place :)


Video will be posted later, but let's just say Asher was the unintentional entertainer of the show.  When the kids first came out, Asher saw a lone feather on the other side of the stage, and he just had to get it!  

That feather would be the downfall of the practiced dance routine :)

Instead of doing the dance steps, he twirled around in the back with the feather in his hand, "softing" (Asher's word) it against his face and swishing it around.  When he realized that the other kids were dancing, Asher went back to his spot only to find someone else in his place... the may have been a few foot stomps (on other feet), and there was definitely an elbow shove, and the little boy whom Asher thought had taken his spot became a mess of tears :(  Sad and yet at the same time, entertaining for all the attendees...  After that, the feather distracted him again so much that he decided to go across the stage to give it to his teacher.  Only when he got there, he changed his mind and ran back across the stage, came to the edge of the stage and started yelling for us to come to the stage and get the feather...  We did, and he did much better after that!  I think he was even beginning to break dance somewhere in there! :)

All the teachers said he did a great job!  Apparently, their view of the show was a little different from ours ;)

Asher is the fifth kid from the left.



There were a couple of other songs that they sang afterwards, and he did very well in those!

Here are some pictures from the Christmas event!




He was so proud of himself!



The next day at school, there was a party in his class.  This time, it looks like he was better able to handle having his face painted!

Our fierce tiger :)



They got hopped up on sugar...


And then Santa came again!  (it was the same Santa that was at Sean's work party!)


Asher was so excited!!  "That's Santa!!  I know him!! I know Santa!!"



It was a great December, and we had lots of fun!  Merry Christmas, Ya'll!!

And here is Sean doing his Fatherly duties and putting together Asher's Christmas present :) 

His look of utter bewilderment finally left after two hours of putting it together.