I left early Saturday morning to visit Ryan in the pouring rain. I returned to this:
Henry and the kids got a jump-start on playing in the snow while I was gone. I made it home just in time to hang their mittens up to dry and make a batch of hot chocolate. Yum!
After warming up, we did this:
It was C.O.L.D and W.E.T. The girls were such troopers (as was the Giant). I warned them before we got out of the car that it would be cold and they would want to go home and we would as soon as we found a tree. They didn’t complain once. Love them. Here’s a taste of our experience.
While the tree was drying off in the garage, we decorated the mantel. This is the first year the girls helped us with this activity and they really enjoyed it. Ainsley said, “What are we going to do with the jingle socks (stockings)?”
We have a family tradition each year where Henry and I buy the kids a new ornament which they open on the day we decorate the tree. They look forward to it every year and love going over the ones from years past. This year Natalie got a Kung-Fu Panda (it was her first big movie in the theater complete with popcorn and daddy) and Ainsley got a bunny rabbit swinging (she can swing for hours).
We all have our roles when it comes to decorating the tree. I put the ‘hangers’ on the ornaments, the girls carry them to the tree, and Henry hangs them. Many of them are glass and the girls have come to expect daddy to secure them properly to the branches.
After the tree was trimmed Natalie said, “It’s time for the scenes!” She is always excited about putting out the nativity scenes. The girls haven’t seen their nativity scene since last year so they were in heaven being able to play with it again. We overheard Natalie say about her donkey (who was galloping away from the stable) “Pretend he’s going on a long trip…to Europe.” Here they are setting up the scene.
We ended the marathon family memory night with a movie and popcorn with the girls. We all curled up under blankets with our bowls of popcorn cuddling and munching. It was a perfect day.
What’s your favorite family holiday tradition?
(c) 2016 Leighann Marquiss
Comments (9)
So precious! Love it! 🙂
The only holiday tradition I can remember with my family is every Christmas Eve, we go to church then to grandma’s house for goodies & opening presents. I love this time of the year!
This year I get to start my own tradition of living away from home with decorating my apartment I have a cute little Christmas Tree & my sister came up to visit & we baked peanut butter cookies with Hershey kisses 🙂
Loved seeing the pictures of the whole evening. I had to laugh because as tall as your tree might be, it looked short compared to henry standing OVER it to hang ornaments. lol
Our Christmas tradition is everyone gets a new pair of pajamas on christmas eve and we sit and watch a christmas movie dressed in our new pjs.
love ya.
such a perfect day…well, if ryan was HOME it would be, huh??
Your kids are so adorable, it always makes me smile when I read about them. I am always lurking looking at your blog. I often pray for your family and your sweet boy Ryan. God bless.
Tradition for my family was always watching “Scrooge” (the old black and white one) on Christmas Eve. I haven’t missed a year!
Melissa
It looked like so much fun. I started a collection each year for my kids from “Baby’s First Christmas” Hallmark keepsake ornaments and every year after with special meanings to the collection like when my son was playing soccer – a Reindeer kicking a soccer ball. When my son and then finance had their wedding shower – they received a box with 28 individually wrapped ornaments inside to start their first Christmas tree with special meaning.
LO ! AHHH!! Ainsley Cracks me up!! She reminds me of my little Rachel. Just walking around in the snow without a care in the world.. You can almost see the little thought of “Wait a minute! I lost Daddy’s footprints, Where did he go?”
“O there he is life is all better”… “Now where was I in that song I was making up?….”
I still can’t get that picture of her in the helmet and sword! Too Funny! She is just the sweetest!
Someday we will have to get these girls together.
PS- I am shocked! Henry is taller than the tree! 😉
aww so cute. I loved all the pictures and the cute video. I didn’t know about your ornament tradition- cool stuff.
cute pictures! love your kids to death… natalie was so funny catching snow on her tongue 🙂
Bobby and i go out and get a LIVE tree (we have a debate every year about live vs artificial- i think at this point he’s half kidding though… there’s no way i could get an artificial tree) anyway, we get the tree and come home and put on christmas music while we put it up and decorate. we have special ornaments as well. each year we get another ornament for the tree. this year’s ornament is a sand dollar with santa on it from our trip to Rehobeth Beach in september. I also always make sure to watch “it’s a wonderful life”. no christmas is the same without it.
katie
You made my day by letting me go with you to the tree farm without having to get cold or wet…and it was so much fun to be there for the tree decoration. Kinda makes me with I had done all that with you kids…I will have to put on my Christmas thinking cap for something for Christmas day. love ya all, Mom Ennis