Our Christmas

Bout time I got these Christmas pics up on this little ol' blog. Oh my goodness so much has happened since then. Feels like this was already ages ago. Would have got this post done sooner but poor little me had some crazy health issues going on. Remember me saying that Carson and Drake got sick. Well the rest of us got it. Only mine went nutso! I got the worlds ugliest cold, which then turned into a sinus infection, then an ear infection and finally a burst eardrum. I kid you not friends. It was ugly. By far the worst, most painful thing that has ever happened to me. It was quite literally 96 hours of pure hell. Excuse my language. Only word that fits it. It was so bad. I would rather have a baby than go through that again. I like to say I am a pretty tough girl, it takes alot to knock me down. I get sick...and I just keep on going. Cold, flu, heck I had pneumonia 3 days after delivering Drake and was still up and at em the next day. This got the best of me though. I was flat on my back for 4 straight days. In the most excruciating pain. Slowly but surely its getting better. Still get some whopping good headaches if I don't stay on my pain medicine. The minute it starts to wear off, boy do I feel it. And I still can't hear out of my right eardrum. I've heard that takes a couple months to come back. So anywho...thats that. 2014 was off to a rough start.

Back to Christmas Eve when times were still good. Haha. Love Christmas Eve. The morning we just take it easy, I got a quick run in. Kids stayed in their jammies and played and then we moved into the kitchen. Threw together a boxed brownie mix for Santa. Holiday M and M's make everything more exciting, right?

Once the brownies were done, the kids got their art supplies out and made Santa a little note and in Lincoln's case a few drawings. While I made a batch of mormon/bran muffins for the next morning to take to a family breakfast. Its such a yummy recipe, my moms of course, secret ingredient is a can of crushed pineapple. They are so moist and delicious!

Eventually got ready for the big night. When I was little, on this very night, I would watch my mom dig out the gifts for each party out from under our tree. Me and my sisters would line up next to her as she pulled out our presents. One from Grandma Huggins, one from Grandpa Woodyatt, one from Grandma Grover and one from her...always our jammies. 4 presents. Me and my sisters would study each box and compare. Love watching my little boys get that same thrill as they watch me pull out their presents. Stacking them up and gathering them for our party. Nothing better!

My sweet boys!

Me and my honey. Carson took this picture. He's standing on a stool to do so. Which is why we are angled so funny. Oh well. He tried.

Then it is off to Grandma Grover's with my moms whole side of the family. 2 sets of grandparents. My mom and Dean and my moms 5 siblings and their spouses. About 25 grandkids and their spouses and a whole bunch of great-grands. Makes for one heck of a party!

Sweet baby Boston's first Christmas. He has that Uncle Theo wrapped around his baby finger. We love our little "Bosty the Snowman". As Lincoln calls him.

Pure, wonderful chaos! Imagine all these little kids opening three presents all at the same time. So much crazy commotion. And I love every minute of it. Wouldn't be Christmas without this party.

Grandpa Cherry...the man himself.

Then when the kids are all sorts of hyped up and crazy, and running around with their cousins going nutso...or if you are Carson you are upstairs with your best friend Lance, in a quiet little corner, hoarding all your new stuff. Just the two of them. Carson told me after I finally found him "that they were getting away from all the noise". Haha. Goofballs.

Anywho, we gathered the kids up and headed to Cano's for their little Christmas Eve gathering.

After more food and opening one present from their Uncle Gus, I gathered them and put them in their new Christmas jammies they got from Grandma Tereasa. Love Christmas jammies, this year I went to Victoria's Secret and bought me a pair too.

By this point it was pretty dang late, about 11:00. Time to get these little tots home and in their beds. Santa Claus was circling the neighborhood.

Got home and they sprinkled their reindeer food in the front yard, with dads help. And we got a muffin, brownie and egg nog ready for Santa. And it was off to bed. I wondered if they would have a hard time getting to sleep, but nope. All three were zonked by the time I got out of the bathtub.

And soon after, Mr. Claus showed up. He certainly did. Is there a sight more beautiful than a family room on Christmas Eve. Truly magical, beautiful, and almost, almost makes me cry. Just the feeling of it all. Thiago headed back to bed, and I just stood there staring for about 10 minutes. The fireplace was warm and all lit up, the Christmas tree all lit up and presents pooring out from beneath it. Three little Santa Clause piles, with three stuffed stockings, bearing the initials of the little boys I love so much. A big hunk of brownie and muffin missing, the egg nog had been drunk, and a note written back from the man himself. Knowing the magic that awaited the next morning. No place else I would have rather been, then staring at the beauty of that moment. Childhood. All wrapped up in one beautiful night. Geez, Christmas, you get me every time. Every single time.

It was a perfect morning. Drake did not appreciate being woken up. But the other two weren't waiting a second longer. So while Cars and Linc dug into their piles, Drakey bug layed on my lap with his sippie cup and his eyes squinted shut for the first 20 minutes or so. At first I was bummed, cause I wanted him to cheer up and share the experience with his brothers. However I then decided it was actually okay, Carson and Lincoln are at such fun ages and were so fun to watch. They were just squealing and going crazy over every little thing they opened. It was fun to watch the two of them.

And as soon as the other two got done, Drake decided he was ready to join the fun. That cute baby sat smack dab in the middle, while the other four of us gathered around and watched him. He was the center of attention and he loved it. It was a Christmas of Superheroes for him. And his reaction was adorable.

Another Christmas of Lego's for this boy. 6 new sets. We are talking the "big" sets. He had all of them put together within 2 days. Completely by himself. He is amazing at Legos. Love watching that little mind just go at it. His favorites include the Lego's, a giant art kit and his Skylanders Swapforce.

Lincoln boy. His favorites are his "Despicable Me" Fart gun. Yeah, its as annoying as it sounds. It is the one thing that consistently stayed on his list. Everytime he was asked what he wanted for Christmas his reply was "the fart gun". So it was a must. Also his new Batcave. Dont you worry that we already own the Fisher Price Batcave, now Imaginext came out with one. And he had to have it. Two Batcaves. And he loves his new Leap Pad.

And my baby bug. Kid loves it all. Got a huge collection of "big" superheroes. Also loves his Jake and the Neverland pirates treehouse, and his telepods and his Superhero pods.

Anybody see that Walmart commercial that kept playing on TBS on Christmas Day. They play continual "Christmas Story" for 24 hours, so we had it on that whole morning as we were getting ready and such. Anywho, cutest commercial. Shows little kids on Christmas morning. Little girl with her doll, little boy opening a huge Transformer, little girl and a new bike and her huge squeal and leap into her dads arms. As they show it there is a little song playing that says "Don't you ever grow up, just stay this little". All I could think about all day long. The commercial makes me cry everytime. And then I think of my boys, and I cry some more. Best years of my life right now. I know I will always want these days back, for as long as I live. Truly believe my prime is right now. Just want to hang on to that with all I have. Wish they could stay this little. A child and Christmas. Just too dang beautiful.

Gosh I love em.

We then had the great honor of going to my grandparents for Christmas morning. My dads family. Grew up doing this. My grandparents huge tree, presents taking over the entire room. Our simple stocking and our second Christmas at their house. My cousins. My mom sitting there, gathering all of our stuff. The melted cheese. The monkey bread. The mormon muffins. Christmas morning for me starts in this little house. Wtih these people. Lifetime of memories. When I got married, and with my parents divorce, things had to change. In 12 years I hadn't been there for Christmas morning. The rest of our family still was. But not me and my sisters. This year, and all the scares we have been having with my Grandma's health. We all twisted our schedules a bit, did a little juggling and we made it back there. Things have changed a little. The tree was bare and money was given. My sweet Grandma sat in her rocking chair and watched as my darling aunts prepared the meal. I'm grown now with kids of my own. As well as many of my cousins. Time has gone by, but the feeling was still there. Love this family so much. Meant so much to me to share this Christmas with them.

Grandma and Grandpa and their three boys.

This picture kills me. My sweet grandma got a little teary eyed. She sat watching all of us, and gave a little talk on how much she loved us all. How grateful she is for her family and to be sharing another Christmas with us. Wasn't a dry eye in the house. Love this sweet lady. Her impact on my life is undescribable. She means so much to me.

Me and my girl. Love my K.

My little boys idolize my cousin Caton. He is the master of all Lego's. You should see his collection. Obviously my boys are in awe.

Quiet moment for this boy. Christmas morning sure does wear you out. Sleepy.

Papa Jeff. My dad doesn't see my kids a whole lot, but when he does, he makes it worth it. They love that Papa Jeff. I do too.

I know this morning is forever stamped in my memory. It truly brought the Christmas spirit for me. And was for sure, the best part of my day. Read a quote that said "I think as you grow older, your Christmas list gets smaller and the things you really want for the holidays can't be bought." Could not be more true. All I want is the people I love, right in front of me. With that, its pretty much perfect.

On to dinner at my moms. Lincoln boy. The illness finally caught him. Crept in just a tad on Christmas mid day. Gave the boy some tylenol and he did okay though. Little bit of a fever. It really hit him the next day, he ended up getting an ear infection as well. But he stayed in pretty good spirits throughout the rest of Christmas and for that I was grateful.

The fun continued on. Love my family so much.

Ended the night at Cano's. Truly one of my best Christmas's. Every single event that day just went perfectly. So much happiness and love. Couldn't ask for more.

I remember as a little girl, looking at my huge pile of presents. My mom always let us keep it out for a few days. Prolong the magic and all. Anyways I would get home and look at my pile, and my sister's piles and then look at my mom and dads measly little piles. Almost nothing compared to us girls. I remember asking her, "how can Christmas be fun for you when you hardly get anything, do you still love it? I remember her smiling and saying "just you wait, it still is every bit as fun". I get it know. I get what she meant. The magic is in watching them. The way they jump up and down and hold that new stuffed minion to their chest. The way they run to cousins, eager to show what they got. Its big breakfasts with family, the kind I grew up with. Its standing in my moms kitchen dipping shrimp cocktail and later drying the dishes with my sisters and cousins and laughing our way through it all. Its homemade ornaments. Its great granny kisses. Its snuggling with your honey on your moms couch. Its the cold, dark outside not even being felt cause the love on the inside is so warm. Its not the gifts. Its the love. The family. The memories. And they burn strong in my heart for another year....til the season comes around again.