We started early this year...

This has been a different Christmas for me since none of my married siblings came home this year. 

We have always had a FULL house since I have 6 sibs, and now almost all of them have several children of their own. 

The last time we were together, Liv was 3 months old and the house was crazy with kids and people running everywhere. 

That's just how it is over here, and how its always been. Even though it can get a little overwhelming at times, I missed seeing everyone this year. 

With that said, opening presents on Christmas Eve with just our small family of 3 was really quaint and fun! 

We were sent so many lovely presents all the way from Oregon from our cute Hansen family! 

We decided to open them on Christmas Eve, after caroling. We were the only ones in the house because my parents 

were dropping treats by few more places.  We were so excited to open them, and set up the tripod to

 catch some of the action. Liv really did love everything and so did we! Thank you!!!

'Twas the night before Christmas

Christmas Eve is just as exciting as Christmas Day to me. We had a big breakfast of pull apart monkey bread, german pancakes, and sausage. Naturally, we were feeling the need to go on a walk after that meal! It was cold and it looked as if it would start raining at any moment so it was a good brisk walk to start out our day and get our energy going!

 Liv waking up from her nap. 

She's taking her time to wake up and being so cuddly. I really enjoy those moments when they come. As she gets older, they're coming less often.

As is tradition in our family, we went caroling and leaving treats for friends. Then came home to a cheesy corn chowder dinner, and "Christmas crackers" (not crackers to eat but the ones that have paper crowns, small toys, and jokes in them). Brady, Liv, and I got to open presents from our Hansen family (we were completely spoiled!!! I have a video of Liv opening those presents to come later), and then from extended family. We taught Liv about the birth of Jesus using one of the Nativity scenes, and skipped dressing up this year. We ended with B telling us the story behind "Silent Night" and listened to the Vienna Boys Chorus sing the first verse in German, then we all sang the first verse together (in English). It was simple and beautiful.

My gift to B

We put out some cookies for Santa, and explained that tonight was the night he would be coming down the chimney to leave presents.
I turned to grab my camera and snap a few pictures of Liv setting Santa's cookies on the fireplace, and when I turned back around she was eating them herself! It made us crack up. Then we got a carrot out for the reindeer, and Liv went ahead and ate that too! She was completely wired and was so much fun to watch! She was running around in circles, jumping, playing with Grammy and Grampy, and rolling around on the floor. Just beside herself with excitement!

I was tired at this point and wondering how I was going to get her to go to bed! 

She's entertaining herself by looking in the mirror and making faces instead of brushing her teeth like I'm trying to get her to do.

  I say this a lot, but she is just so much fun to watch! Even when I'm exhausted at the end of the day.

 She absolutely fits her name "OLIVIA" because just like Olivia piggy (as we call the famous book over here), I could tell her, 

"You wear me out, but I love you anyway", and I hope she would also reply "I love you anyway too"! 

We're thankful for our Livy girl, and for this wonderful holiday to celebrate the birth of our Savior.

baking, crafting, eating, making, and train rides

I'm always terrible at updating during Christmas time, and I usually just never get back around to posting all the things we did. 

This year I'm trying to be better, so here is a "quick" post to record what we've been up to.

We've been doing lots of baking and Christmas crafts around here.

And taking cheesy pictures apparently: That's me eating my Mom's melt in your mouth ginger cookies.

Liv painting a gingerbread "ornament/light catcher"

 You know her creative juices are flowing when her tongue comes out. Its usually wiggling from side to side when she's drawing or painting.

Baking, baking, baking!

My mom and I have been baking all day. The list this year included peppermint merengues, fudge, coconut craisin bars, ginger snap cookies, and pecan pralines.

Wassel- This tastes like Christmas to me. My Mom always makes it!

We snacked on a few (okay way too many) treats and drank wassel while we watched "A Christmas Story"

A few nights earlier we made pumpkin spice lattes, snacked on chex mix (this is another treat that tastes like Christmas to me. One of those special things my Mom makes every year), hand cut snowflakes, and watched "Christmas Vacation"

We took Liv to the mall to see Santa and ride the train. I didn't mention this in the post about Santa, so I will here- Every time we would ask her what she wanted for Christmas she would always first say with a big smile, "Christmas!", then we would tell her "a dolly and a doggy". This might be the last year we get to tell her what she wants for Christmas :)

While we were in line she stayed busy by decorating a felt gingerbread girl I picked up at Michael's for $0.99. Best purchase ever. She plays with it every day. You could totally make something on your own like this too. Speaking of making, I made a little girl version of this headband for Liv. I think its pretty adorable on her.

She LOVED the train ride! I was slightly surprised because I thought when the train started pulling away  and getting further and further from us she might get nervous, but no way! Even that little boy in front of her started bawling and screaming on the 2nd time around. She was just kind of looking sympathetic at him, but would always smile and wave and blow kisses to us when she came around.

She loved it so much that we let her go around a second time. She was the only one on the train, haha!

Just loving all this time we get to spend together!!!

3rd time's the charm...wait

 Not in this case. I think this whole picture with Santa thing is actually getting worse!

2009 (just complacent)

2010 (crying- this is actually my fave of the three)

2011(terrified-

I didn't have the heart this year to just set her on his lap and leave. 

He was kind of scary even to me)

I have to write a quick blurb on the Santa picture we just took this year. Its obviously not professional (in fact none of these ones are), B just hurried and took it. The cheapest package was $23. I guess this is pretty normal and I'm just a cheapskate, but holy cow I only want one photo. I would have paid $5 and even $10 for one photo if it was a good Santa and backdrop etc. But this Santa was the worst I've ever been to, not to mention the backdrop was nothing to get excited about. Liv was waving really cute at him while we were in line and saying Hi Santa, and he was sleeping in between kids and never acknowledged her. A small wave wouldn't have been too hard, right? He never smiled and barely said 2 words. No wonder she didn't want to sit on his lap. For the record, I do feel kind of bad for all the mall Santa's out there since the majority of the kids you see are screaming their heads off, but I've been to enough Santa's that smiled through it all and were still cordial.

We had prepped all week for visiting Santa. Liv seemed totally set. I showed her pictures of kids sitting on Santa's lap and she knew that she would go and "sit on lap". I had even gone over all the questions with her! If Santa asks if you've been a good girl you say, "Yes I'm a good girl". What do you want for Christmas? "A dolly and a doggy". She was seriously adorable when I was asking the questions. Like I said, in line just before it was our turn she was waving and talking to Santa, then when it was our turn she just turned and with terror in her eyes she said,"No...no...no" I picked her up and she dug her fingers in and wrapped those legs around me and I knew she wasn't going anywhere. I even tried to bribe with candy, but no go. She was not letting go. So I sat right down on mean Santa's lap and smiled for camera. I couldn't even get her to turn and look at her Daddy. Oh well. At least I didn't pay anything for that! And we have a good story to tell her when she's older!

Colors

Its Fall! I know its really winter, but things move a little slower around here, and it would seem that it is just now that time of year when the leaves are falling from the trees, and the air has gotten a bit colder. I'm loving the colors and finally being able to enjoy the reds, oranges, and greens that I've been waiting (all fall) to enjoy.

I've had a cold for the last two weeks which then progressed to a sinus infection, and I haven't been sleeping well. Two night ago, it started to rain. I guess that was all I needed. I listened to the rain and slept like a baby, and when I woke up for the first time at 7am, I felt refreshed and relieved that I had actually slept through the night. I was greeted by teh kind of rolling thunder that only Texas can produce and dark cloudy skies; more rain. I rolled over and went back to bed. Heaven!

Today there is a break in the rain and the sun in shining, so we went outside to play. Everyday we go outside, Liv wants to pick an "apple" off the tree. Its actually a pear tree, but she continues to call them apples. Whatev. I'll always pick one for her and she takes a big bite before I can even get inside to wash and peel it. Its just a tree in our backyard so at least I know there were no pesticides used on it, right?! It kind of scares me every time she bites before I wash. 


Today, though, she pointed at the pear tree and said, "tiny apple?"  I looked and saw that there was not a pear in sight. I told her the "apples" are all gone. She was frowning and staring at the tree. I explained that the "apples" went to bed for winter, and they would come back in the summer. She said, "ohhhhh nooooo!" She was already over it immediately after saying that, and it just made me laugh.

Decorating the tree

I knew my parents were going on a little trip to San Diego the first week in December, so I made sure we decorated the tree before that. My mom wanted to wait until after their trip, but I wasn't having it.

 Liv was mesmerized by all the decorations. She loved taking each one out. When I brought her to the tree to hang the first one, she walked over and tucked it underneath the tree, like a present. Its weird that she's never decorated a tree before! And of course, fun as always when we get to introduce her for the first time, to something that is so special to us.

Getting some help from Grampy 

About halfway through, she decided that all the ornaments were purses :)