A Holly Jolly Christmas

The excitement of Christmas morning finally arrived! Well, after we woke Pierce up around 7:15. Who knew that would be the morning he wanted to sleep!  We would have left him there longer except we had to pack up and leave later and knew he would want time to play.

I love the magic of Christmas through the eyes of a child and hope that it continues for much, much longer!!!

At school, he wrote a note to Santa and asked for a blanket and socks...Santa listened and got him new Auburn bedding and basketball socks!

He was VERY, VERY excited about his new basketball goal!!  Big presents don't look like much under the tree.

Of course, we had to have our "Happy Birthday, Jesus!" celebration before we packed up to head out of town.

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:11

The Night Before Christmas...

Our Christmas Eve was a little different than in the past. We went to the Christmas Eve service at church, but missed seeing all of the sweet faces of so many friends. However, it was a good service and I look forward to it again next year.  We also missed out on our annual dinner with friends, so we went out instead (not a bad compromise since I didn't have to cook!).  We even let Pierce open his big gift from us, which we've never done before...but since we leave on Christmas day for several days, we wanted him to have a little extra time to enjoy it.

So VERY excited about his game system!  Too bad it had to download the games and he didn't really get to play it that night.  Oops.

He put the reindeer food out, cookies for Santa, told Elfie good bye, and we all read the Christmas story together before bed. 

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.  And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."  Isaiah 9:6

School Break Entertainment

AU Basketball games have been fun, out of school, entertainment! We all love them and it's hilarious when Pierce starts yelling during the game.  We love visiting with Mary  Claire and her family since they get season tickets.  One game, we sat with Jones and his family which was another special treat!

 

Pierce told me that Mary Claire looked cute in her cheerleading clothes!  I love that she wore her pink boots with it!

He says this is his "game face".

Of course, keeping stats...

We also barely squeezed in our Gingerbread house before Christmas.  I think we did it on Christmas Eve or the day before.  However, it's been so yucky and rainy, it was a fun indoor activity that did not involve electronics!

Pj's and A Party

Not only is it fun at school when it's two days before your Christmas break, but when you get to wear PJ's to school and have a class party, it makes it the best!

 

I was thankful that I could help with his Christmas party at school.  They had lots of fun foods to eat like donut snowmen, donut reindeer (we made), Grinch kabobs, and pigs in a blanket wreath.  The kids had a holiday photo booth, played pin the nose on Rudolph, and made reindeer food.  Reindeer food was my station and the craziest one of all.  There was glitter everywhere!

I also found this letter he wrote to Santa outside of his classroom when I left.  If I didn't know better, I would think he was homeless since he asked for a blanket and socks for Christmas!  I'm hoping he meant new Auburn bedding and Basketball socks!

First Grade Holiday Music

The First Grade classes at Pierce's school put on a cute Holiday music celebration. They sang lots of cute songs like "Up on the Rooftop", "Rudolph, the Red Nosed Reindeer", and "Santa Claus is Coming to Town". It was a morning filled with sweet voices, cute Christmas hats, and love of smiling faces!

 

I was surprised that Pierce and his buddy, Grayson, ended up standing by each other even though they are in different classes.  Grayson's hat was, by far, my favorite one!

Holiday Hustle & Bustle

The holiday season always brings with it a very busy time. This year was no exception. This particular weekend started with a neighborhood trail walk with my buddy and Maggie! 

Then, Art and Mac hosted a family meal, along with a visit from Grandmomma, Granddaddy, and Uncle Mike's family.  We all went to the Victorian Porch Tour in Opelika...these little goofy cousins had a blast!

Cooper, Pierce and Eli

On Sunday, I went to the Nutcracker with this nut.  He liked it more than I thought he would and loved watching two of the girls up the street during their performances.

Jammies with Santa

Our neighborhood HOA hosted, "Jammies with Santa" at the clubhouse. The kids had lots of time with Santa, Mrs. Claus, and "Elfie"-the head Elf.  The also had donuts and milk, made crafts, and wrote letters.  I loved getting a photo with Santa and not going anywhere!

I'm not sure Pierce has ever seen Mrs. Claus before, he was amazed!

He talked to the bug guy quite a while.  Santa told him he loved milk, that's why his belly was so big!  Pierce also reported that this Santa was the real deal and not just one of the helper Santa's. 

 

I thought he might not be sure of this Elf lady, but he believed her when she said to leave an extra cookie out for her.  And, if he was bad, it was ok...she didn't always tell Santa everything!