Let it Snow!

The day after Christmas we decided to take the kids to play in the snow at my parents cabin in Pinetop! They had LOTS of snow and it was so, so cold! This was my first snow storm and I thought the snow was so beautiful!

The cabin has a huge bush and when it's covered in snow it was perfect for the kids to climb and sled down...

Sammy sledding down the bush

Sammy and Ben waiting their turn down the hill...I told Ben to stop making goofy faces and this is the face he made (so serious)...

More sledding...

The kids loved sledding so much at my parents cabin that we decided to take them to a cinder pit Benson had heard about near my parents cabin on Saturday. We packed up and drove to it...only the kids HATED it! They were so cold (the temperature gauge on Benson's car said 6 degrees) they cried the WHOLE time...so we only got one picture! We will have to remember this place another time when it is a tad bit warmer! Benson and Sammy racing down the big hill!

Back at the cabin after naps and the weather heating up a bit they were happy again...Nate LOVED eating the snow (what doesn't he like eating?)

Sammy making a snow angel...

Playing in the snow..

Ben loved the snow...but he DID NOT like to be cold! Kind of tricky!

Mom and Ben

Other than playing in the snow we hung out and watched movies and drank LOTS of hot cocoa... I thought Ben would get sick from it, but no! He loved it!

And of course they loved to hang out by the fire!

CHRISTMAS!!

We had a FABULOUS Christmas this year! I love this time of year and love spending time with family. My kids were totally into Christmas and it is so much fun to see the magic of Christmas through my kids eyes! We had a nice low-key Christmas Eve and had Benson's parents over for dinner. They gave the kids their presents and Ben was very excited about the Batman stuff (I think Benson liked it too)... We also had a SURPRISE visit from Santa...the kids were in awe of him and so excited that he brought them each a present (new jammies)!

We also made and decorated cookies for Santa...

Nate only liked the sprinkles :)

After Nana and Papa left...my sister Kacey and her husband came over to spend the night! My other sister (Reagan) made the kids some reindeer food and the kids loved sprinkling it on the lawn. Nate kept yelling to the sky "EAT IT- DUDOLF" It was so hilarious!

Getting ready for bed...

and leaving Santa cookies and milk
Santa Came!

Ben and Nate really wanted the "big Optimus Prime" toy...

And Samantha really wanted the Samantha American Girl doll (or was it that I wanted it...I'm not sure)

Ben is really into Star Wars lately and was really excited to get some Star Wars toys!

Ben was pretty easy to read on Christmas morning...if he liked his present he would kiss it!

Papa Jones helping Nate shoot his new gun

Ben really wanted to get Reagan something to "paint her hair" and picked out some sparkly nail polish for her...

Christmas Night we had dinner and exchanged gifts with the my family....We had such a wonderful Christmas and I am so thankful that we could celebrate it together as a family!

Christmas Activities....

Since I have been a little behind on my blogging...I thought I would do one post on all the stuff we have been doing to prepare for Christmas! My kids have been so into Christmas this year...especially Nate. Every time he sees anything that is for Christmas he says "Nate LOOOVVVES Christmastime"...it is so cute! Samantha and Ben love to make snowflakes...we made a bunch and hung them up in the toy room (thanks for idea Kaylani)!

They have loved playing with this little Nativity...so cute!

We have done TONS of baking...orange rolls, sugar cookies, peanut butter blossoms, cinnamon rolls...etc! The kids love to help in the kitchen!

We also slept under the Christmas tree one night...this was a tradition that I did as a kid and LOVED! Ben said this is favorite thing about Christmas...Benson and Nate didn't last the night and by the morning I was so sore...being pregnant and sleeping under the tree wasn't a good combo for me...but it was worth it for the memories (or at least I tell myself that)! Samantha and Ben told me in the morning that they heard Santa Claus come and check on them while they were sleeping...isn't that awesome?

We also painted some ornaments for the tree...we actually made several ornaments this year but I some how only got a picture of this activity!

Nate has recently liked crafting...he used to hate it, but he has finally taken up the idea of painting!

Samantha LOVES to do projects and would do them ALL DAY long if I let her! She loved making ornaments this year and has homemade me SEVERAL Christmas gifts already and has promised more to come on Christmas Day!

Jingle Bell bracelets...for some reason my kids totally love to make these! Totally a hit!

We have had such a wonderful Holiday season...Benson always laughs at me because I am always a little sad on Christmas...I don't want the season to be over! I love this time of year and the kids make it so much fun!

Gingerbread House!

For Family Night we decorated our Gingerbread House...Thank goodness they sell those kits or my kids would probably never decorate a gingerbread house! We have also learned that they only like to decorate it...NOT PUT THE HOUSE TOGETHER...so we finally learned to put the house together in advance...seriously, makes the whole process a lot smoother! Nate pounded the candy...he ate so much of it...he got sick and puked the whole night...I was hoping it was from the candy and not stomach flu (which he never threw up again so it looks like that was the case)!

Our final product...

Live Nativity

Sunday night we were invited to a Live Nativity at my in-laws neighbors house (the same neighbors that invited us to the Polar Express party). It was so much fun and so nice to see a live re-enactment of the birth of the Savior right before Christmas. Before the program the kids loved checking out the stable...with "Live Chickens" and they even got to feed Mary's donkey...they loved that!

Nate wanted to see the animals from a distance (the chickens freaked him out) but he did want to see all the goodies up close...so we went to check those out :)

Sammy and Ben were invited to participate as Shepherds in the play...they were so excited and took their part very seriously!

After the production we decided to get a picture of our family in the stable...what a fun night and a great way to remind the kids of the real meaning of Christmas!