Our Christmas...

Well, it has come and gone for another year. All of the shopping, and wrapping, and baking, and decorating and counting down the days until the big 25....and just like that it is all over with. It breaks my heart...just a little. December truly is in a league all of its own, at least for me anyways. Nothing else can top the magic of this season, and for me it is always hard to say goodbye. However, as I am typing away my Mr. Drake is doing some type of summersault in my belly...and I am reminded of all that is to come. And ya know what, I guess I can say goodbye to 2010 and hello to 2011. It brings good things for us.


So as we wrap up this holiday season....here is a glimpse of our Christmas. It was magical, and beautiful, and every bit as wonderful as I hoped it would be.

CHRISTMAS EVE



We are all dolled up and ready to go...well I am dolled up, the boys just look handsome as ever. Can't really call them "dolled up".




We always leave out our cookies and milk for Santa before we head out. My littles always fall asleep on the car ride home, and I don't want them missing out on that moment. So we set them out a little early. Carson was perplexed as to why we were putting the carrots on the plate with the cookies. Thiago tried to explain that Santa would take them out to the reindeer, but Carson just didn't understand why we wouldn't just leave them outside. Good question, I don't know.



PARTY AT GRANDPA CHERRY'S





There is a whole bunch of us there is pretty much all I can tell you. I mean alot. We eat and we eat, the same meal every year since I was my kids age. I wouldn't have it any other way, remember I am all about tradition. The kids all play downstairs until we start the presents. Then they run like mad up those stairs, screaming and yelling and jumping up and down. That is when the real chaos begins. About 20-25 little kids all flinging paper at the same time. No one knows what anyone else got, but its fabulous!






My monkeys were pleased as heck with their mean versions of Lightening Mcqueen and Mator and their new books from their great grandparents and the new jammies from Grandma Tereasa.



VOVO'S HOUSE





Off to Thiago's parents for another huge meal and everyone getting to open just one present. The boys opened their gifts from Gus and Shalae. Carson got a remote control Star Wars ship and Lincoln got Ironman.



CHRISTMAS MORNING


And he came, he sure did.


Carson's pile...


and Lincoln's. A little confusion when Santa got the stockings confused. For some reason he gave Lincoln the Santa and Carson the Snowman. Doesn't Santa know it is the other way around, I mean for heavens sake. He should have known that Santa is Carson's favorite....Yikes!








They ripped through those presents like nobody's business. Especially Carson. He is no dummy, forget the stocking. He goes straight for the big boxes. He was in search of that Crane, and he found it alright. Could have stopped right there, he was so happy.

Lincoln needed a little help. We kept having to remind him that there was more. He just wanted to take his time and play with each thing he was opening. Carson was quick to get him back on schedule.



Favorites include...the giant crane, Lincoln's big choo-choo, and the Chuggers. Oh, the Chuggers. We are big fans of Chuggington in this house. We couldn't be happier with our new Chuggington roundhouse, 9 new chuggers and a Wilson carrying case.






BACK TO VOVO'S








Back to the Cano's for breakfast and presents. I was scared to look at the scale at my doctors apppointment today. All of this holiday food can't be doing good things. Anyways, it was lots of fun...especially this little moment....



the boys opening their combined present. A giant train table and train set. Do you notice a reoccuring theme going on here. Yeah, they are obsessed with trains. They love this thing. We finally got it all set up tonight, and it was all we could do to haul them away from it come bedtime. Pictures to come.




MY MOM'S






Now my moms, for a huge dinner. My most favorite dinner, I save the most room for this meal. Cause I absolutely love it. And of course more presents. The boys each got their Hallmark ornament and a pillow pet from my mom and Dean and my Granny O made them a pillow with their pictures on it. Super cute. Look for them in the end pictures. My mom and Dean gave us a huge, beautifully framed picture of the Bountiful temple. The temple we were married in, I absolutely love it and know it must have cost them alot. I am so excited to hang it in our home. Please excuse my husband in this last picture. That is him making fun of me for posing with my present. He is trying to act equally excited about pictures, he's funny..isn't he.




PAPA JEFF'S



Any my dads. For you guessed it, more presents and food.

We were stuffed.


The final piles look a little like this. More or less, I think there are a few things missing.


Carson




Lincoln



Yep, we had a busy, full, spoiled Christmas.

Now the fun part of getting all these toys organized and put in new homes. And the dreaded job of taking down all of my Christmas. Its going to be a busy couple of days around here.

Hoping all of yours was absolutely wonderful....and Happy New Years all.