I love Christmas. I love the traditions that we hold and how our normally chaotic lives slow down for a week surrounding the holiday. I love giving gifts and enjoying holiday meals with my family. It’s just the best time, you know?

We celebrated with Justin’s family the first weekend in December. All the kids were given Christmas head-wear.

We celebrated with my dads parents the second weekend in December, but I failed to get any photos!

A few days before Christmas I braved the kitchen with all three kids to make homemade Christmas cookies for Santa.

On Christmas Eve, we spent the evening at Meme and Papa’s house.  After dinner, the kids all opened their gifts.  We took our annual Christmas photo.  Jase received his favorite gift of the year–a battery operated play chainsaw.  He “cut” Meme’s tree, all of our legs, the furniture in our house, and anything else he could think of.  The chainsaw had to travel with us for days.

Christmas morning 2016 arrived with gorgeous, spring-like weather.  Perfect, since Santa brought bubble balls, Eno hammocks and a John Deere tractor.

Christmas evening is always celebrated at Pops and Gra-Gra’s house.  The kids were gifted a new trampoline (since their old one was ruined in the storm), a few other little toys, and lots of new underwear!

We played games (which Justin and I always dominate) and had the greatest time.  We fell, exhausted, into bed sometime around midnight.   Merry Christmas 2016!