When Did This Happen?

 Being a mother of three beautiful daughters, it still boggles my mind to know that I am also the mother of two very handsome sons!

 

When did this happen?

 

 Along those same lines...when did Christmas happen?

 

A favorite tradition of ours is taking the kids to The Dollar Store to play Secret Santa for one another.  This year they had a blast picking out their gifts, and oh what a time they had concealing their purchases from one another (they are all notoriously NOSY)!

But lo and behold, Christmas came and went and we remembered two days after the fact that yet more was to be given!  Luckily, we Elmers are always up for still more surprises and this gave us the perfect opportunity to have more fun together.

By the way, I know your curious.

This year they surprised Dad with a level (it works great!), and mom was the proud recipient of a bag of Pixie Stix (my favorite!).

Food Network Challenge: Here We Come!

My sister and her family have a fantastic tradition of decorating Gingerbread Houses for Christmas.  Each family member has their own kit which they assemble and decorate to their liking.  It's always fun to see what they come up with...

 

We followed suit with a shared Gingerbread House, the basis of which Samuel created with cardboard.  He was so proud of himself!

The kids on the other hand were more excited about the decor.  After all, to ensure our house was sound we needed to test (taste-test that is) the building materials to ensure they were top quality.

There were!

 

I made some heavy duty royal icing cement and we went to town with the graham crackers which served as our drywall.

 

Our side (Iris, Ava, and I) was a haphazard collection of goodies placed every which way.  Of particular note was the sour ribbon siding which I thought added a pretty classy touch-especially since some of the pieces were half-eaten!

Hey, they're good!

 

The other side (Isabella's & Dad's) was much more orderly and reflected a more "traditional" style-very symmetrical.  You should have heard them howl when we tried to sneak rogue pieces of candy onto their side!

So touchy!

I don't know that our gingerbread house will win a national Food Network Competition, but maybe we'd win a prize if we entered in this goofball?

What do you think?

Bells Are Ringing...

What a great morning!  Though Samuel and I didn't get a wink of sleep, we so enjoy this special time with our little ones-who, if you look carefully-are not quite so little anymore!  These are moments to cherish, and I am so grateful we are a family.

 

I couldn't let Gabriel sleep through this-his first Christmas morning!  He was in a great fog for the festivities, but thanks to his sweet-natured temperament he did just fine.

 

Weights for dad...hint, hint!

 

Sluggishnesses...(yes, that's a word)

 

Thank goodness for fruit in stockings.  It gives the children a hope of something of nutritional value.

 

Assembly time!

 

My favorite stocking stuffer....

 

Want one?

This is the super-tasty gum that turns rock hard after Bite Number One!

Yum!

4 AM Thoughts and Reflections

Samuel and I always mean to wrap well before Christmas Eve but this year we finally embraced the late night as a tradition.  In years past we've gone until 2:30 AM, but this year we tootled around until 4 AM.  It's a special time, and this moment is my favorite.  Turning out the lights and getting one last look. 

Christmas certainly does come "but once a year", and I am so grateful for that greatest gift of all, the Savior.  Born in the humblest of circumstances he brought with him the promised blessing that we could each return to the presence of our Father in Heaven. 

"The spirit of giving gifts has been present in the mind of each Christian as he or she commemorates the Christmas season. Our Heavenly Father gave to us His Son, Jesus Christ. That precious Son gave to us His life, the Atonement, and victory over the grave.

"What will you and I give for Christmas this year? Let us in our lives give to our Lord and Savior the gift of gratitude by living His teachings and following in His footsteps. It was said of Him that He 'went about doing good.' 

As we do likewise, the Christmas spirit will be ours."

Thomas S. Monson

Jumping Jacks, Powdery Donut Goodness, & Fresh PJ's

There's something terribly wrong about working out and then frying something two seconds later.  That's what Samuel and I did though, because that's just what you DO on Christmas Eve!

 

How it happened was, we needed something fun for breakfast!  So with a lonely can of biscuit dough and some memories from making these a long, long time ago in my kindergarten class, we fried our own donuts and rolled them in powdered sugar.  This coupled with chocolate-filled croissants made for a positively sinful start to the day!

 

Later that evening we arrived home from Christmas Eve dinner and prepared our home for Santa.  This year we upgraded to full-size carrots instead of the snack-size carrots and even opted for a non-traditional treat: Chocolate Hazelnut Pirouettes!

 

Per tradition we all opened one gift...

 

Jammies!

And before everyone ran off to bed to catch those "visions of sugar-plums" we captured one final photo.  I love that my daughters are all smiles and my sons are...well, you can see for yourself!

Merry Christmas Eve!

Ava's Snowmen vs. Snowbikers

I love how my daughter, in her beloved innocence, once upon a time drew happy and lighthearted pictures of joyful and smiling snowmen.

 

Then she spied our touching neighbors Christmas display which featured a plywood cutout of a biker Snowman outfitted in a black leather vest, jeans, and yes, holding a beer can.  The can, thank heavens, did NOT make it into her drawing.

I should be so grateful, right?

Homemade Butter...

Isabella's class has been reading "Little House in the Big Woods", and per tradition her class held their annual "Little House Luncheon"!

 In keeping with the theme, each student also participated in aunique Secret Santa Gift Exchange.  What made it so special, was that the gift had to be homemade and in keeping with something you would give or receive in "Little House" times.  Isabella chose to make this baby doll quilt for her friend Kayliegh!

 They dined from pie tins filled with Swedish meatballs, mashed potatoes, slaw, and cornbread, and drank apple cider from glass jars. 

They even made fresh homemade butter and apple sauce for the feast!

 

No meal is complete with out dessert!  And this meal was no exception with fresh fruit and cream and an assortment of sugar and gingerbread cookies!

 

 With full tummies they came together for stories and a rousing sing-a-long!

 

 We are so grateful for wonderful teachers who make learning come alive!  This was a really special activity, and it's one I know Isabella will never forget.

Now I'm anxious to make homemade butter myself...

Merry Christmas!

 Yes, Iris isn't smiling and Gabriel is crying...

but we love you and want to wish you a...

 Merry Christmas!

Cocoa Meringues, Dark Chocolate-dipped Orange Biscotti, & Fudgy Brownies...

Every year we hold an annual cookie exchange with Samuel's side of the family.  It's very traditional, and all the classic cookies and treats are covered.  You can always count on an excellent Butter Nut Ball, a moist Peanut Butter cookie, and some amazing Toffee and Peanut Brittle.

Yum! 

Last year, we instituted the tradition with my side of the family and I love it because it's more of a wild-card affair, with everyone taking the opportunity to try new recipes.  There's tons of sampling, and because we hold it at 11:00 AM, it's basically lunch for the day!

Do you hear my kids complaining?

  

Grandma Rose & Gabriel

 

 Great-grandma Lopez surrounded by her great-grandbabies:

Clockwise from top left: Iris, Ava, Taylor, Gabriel (love that smile!), Isabella, Jacob, Lola, & Owen

What a great opportunity for our family to come together in a warm and toasty kitchen to laugh, to remember, and to love!

When was the last time you ate a cookie AND shared a hug?

Try it!

It makes all the difference!

Cookies or Santa? Santa or Cookies?

 Our girls school held it's second annual Winter Sing and I have nothing but high praises for the principal and staff!  Those kids belted out some fabulous Christmas songs and all in under 30 minutes! 

Woo hoo!

 Enjoying the view from the cheap seats

(i.e. standing and far, far away!).

 

 Isabella

 

 Ava

 

 Refreshment time!

 

 We would have been out the door in under an hour (a record as far as school functions go), but blast it all this year Santa came to visit!  I was a mean, mean momma and told the kids you either stand in the cookie line or the Santa line-but not both! 

Isabella chose Santa while the others positively gorged themselves on cookies!

 

Alright I caved!

We did hide one cookie and cup of hot chocolate from Owen so Bella could enjoy them too!  Secretly I'm thrilled she chose Santa over treats.

At eight years old she still believes...

and don't we all?

The Elmer Family Dinner sans Kids

Every year my mother-in-law hosts an adult-only dinner with all of her children and their spouses.  It's something we look forward to every year and is a special time to relax over pizza, See's Candy, and games.

Here's my sister-in-law Elizabeth acting out...what?

 

My brother-in-laws, Houston, Nathan, and Joe and my sister-in-law Leah trying to figure it out too!

 

My sister-in-law Rachel, her husband Bill, and Samuel's mom and dad laughing it up!

 

Samuel's turn.

Check out the intense concentration...

I am so grateful for my in-laws.  In "The Family: A Proclamation to the World", it states that: "Extended family may lend support when needed."  What a blessing it is to know that we have so much love and support.

Who did NOT want to see Santa?

The answer is below.

Our Ward Christmas Party is a family affair that is extremely low-key which I absolutely LOVE!  We have breakfast in our jammies-how great is that?

 

 I love Gabriel's reindeer thermals!

 

 Iris NOT camera-happy!

 

She can't resist her dad though!

 

 All the primary children sang Christmas carols. 

 

 A visit from the fourth wise man reminding us of the true meaning of Christmas.

 

 

 The big guy!

 

 Isabella getting awfully big for climbing up on the knee!

 

You've gotta love this shot.  If you guessed Owen-you're RIGHT!  Your prize is a crying 2-year old!  He'll be delivered in minutes!

Just kidding.

We LOVE our Owen-boy!

 

Gabriel...so easy going!

I'm missing a photo of Ava who also told Santa her wish list.  All in all, that makes four out of five kids that made it.  Not bad!

Merry Christmas!