Christmas Morning

 Kate was the first to wake up.  We  were so exhausted that we brought her one present and let her play with it until the boys awakened.  Thankfully, she kept busy for another 2 hours before it was time to tear through the wrapping paper.  Incredible!!!

 Thank you, Berryhills... I love this tradition!!!

 Nothing else compares to that excitement those first few moments after the paper's been torn, the Santa hat's been thrown and even the sacred blankie has been discarded to see what awaits them inside.  Even the cinnamon rolls taste sweeter on December 25th! 

 Kate immediately ran to get her doll to try out the new horse Santa left.

 Luke was more excited about his letter workbook he found in his stocking than the huge train set that Santa so carefully set up for him.  He wanted to get right to work.  We have a fanatic on our hands.

 Jake.  Let's take a moment to just notice the facials of Jake on Christmas morning.  Go ahead, scroll right on through.  He is simply classic.  

 I think Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were a huge hit this year :)

 Jake was ecstatic when it came time for Kate to open her present from him.  He couldn't wait!!!!  It had to be the very first gift to start off Christmas 2013.

 It was perfect, Jake!  Just what your big sister wanted.  

 Stoked.  

 Love this one

 "MY FWASH CAWD WETTERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" 

 Let it be known that he sleeps with his flashcard letters almost every night. 

 And those facials are still going...

 Kate made me wait until the very end to open up her gift.  She could barely contain herself.  Me too!!

 LOVE my new earrings.  I wear them every day.  THANK YOU SO MUCH!  

Cutest bear I've ever seen...although, what's with the socks and flipflops?!!  She's even more like me than I realized ;) 

Yep... now it's Kate's turn to play letters with this guy 

 The boys are ready for a few projects with Dad and he's ready for a nap :)

What a fun morning!  Why not eat a few more cinnamon rolls and make an even bigger mess!!!  

It is Christmas after all :)

We are so very blessed.

Christmas Eve 2013

After we finished our Christmas deliveries, we hurried home and I started making Nana's Lasagna (slightly altered of course, due to Chile's limited resources).  

After all, Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without it!  We were so excited because in just a few hours,  two of our favorite gringo families would be joining us to celebrate. The Whitt's and Karen's parents, who were in town, and the Hamilton's. 

 Scott and Joe were ready to eat from the get go, but we decided to have the Nativity first. 

 The Hamilton boys were completely in charge.  They provided the script, the costumes, the parts, and directed the entire show.  They were incredible.  

It was time to get everything in its place:

 Baby Jesus loved his comfy manger and Mary and her sheep did such a good job tending to him.  

 

 When it was time start the show, Mary took her place on the prized part of the donkey.  Dallin could have won an award for his performance.

 The inn keeper took his role very seriously.  

 It took a while to get a final answer on if there really was any room at the Inn.  So the donkey decided to take a bit of a break.  

 The 3 Wise Men 

 It was a fantastic show.  We were all very impressed.  Luke loved his role so much that he didn't want to let it go :)  We figured the coffee table was a good place to keep him.

 And then it was time to EAT!!!!!

 Play football...

 Take a group photo...

 And then another...

 And how about one more...

 After a few Christmas carols were sung, the Oreo competition began!

 First for the men,

 then for the kids,

 then for the ladies...

 I had no idea that this was one of my talents :)  

It was truly a celebration!  Thank you for filling in for our families on Christmas Eve.  We LOVED having you join us!!!  

Time for bed.  You know who was on his way!