Christmas

It always amazes me how fast Christmas comes and goes.  All month was spent getting excited and ready for the big day, then it finally came and I hardly had time to take a breath before it was over.  This was our first Christmas on our own, away from family.  And our first Christmas since Will was added to the mix.  It was a fun, but somewhat exhausting one.  I think Pete and I both had a similar vision of what the actual day would be like.  We would spend the first half of the day opening presents, playing with toys and gifts as we went along.  No need to hurry, we had no where to go.  The kids would play quietly with their toys, we would have some time to rest, we'd break out some of the good snacks we had throughout the day.  The day would be one of rest, good food, happy children, kind words (maybe even a nap?)  We'd have time to reflect on Christ, read a few books, spend quality time together as a family... Well, there were certainly more than a few parts of our vision that came to fruition.  But by the end of the day Pete and I were both spent, emotionally and physically, and we were reminded that we do indeed have 4 kids ages 6 and under.  And when you're trying to please that many little ones, you don't have time for much rest.  It was all I could do to pull myself away from the chaos to make breakfast, with a baby in arm, a remote control car nearly tripping me multiple times, and little boys hollering out for help with their Lego sets.  It was a busy day indeed, but a happy and hopefully memorable one for the kids.

Playing Jenga on Christmas Eve... that night we joined some friends in our ward for dinner and games and had a wonderful time.

Christmas Eve jammies... the kids didn't need any pj's (and I didn't really feel like making any), so we opted for thermal underwear to wear while sledding, skating, skiing, etc... and to wear to bed.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds :)

I have to give Pete the credit for making Christmas morning magical.  All month he had been telling the kids bedtime stories about the four knights (Sir John, Sir Daniel, Sir Joseph and Sir William) who lived in Jacksonia. These knights defended their castle from Lord Schnarfblatt and his army and the evil dragon.  Joe became particularly fond of the story of the dragon who flew in and stole the Thanksgiving turkey.  These four knights were under the reign of King Peter and always protected Queen Jessica.  Apparently some of Santa's elves were listening in on these stories, because Santa brought the boys Jacksonia.  The castle, the knights and their horses, Lord Schnarfblatt, even the dragon and a turkey.  There was a knight wrapped up in each of our stockings (the queen in mine) with a note to go along with it:

Dear John Sutherland Jackson,
You have been a very good boy this year.  This knight is SIR JOHN.  My elves have heard the bedtime stories your mom and dad have been telling you.  We thought it would be fun for you to have a castle to play with.  Sir John and his brother knights always fight on the same team and do good.  It should be the same in real life.  You are a good big brother.  Keep being kind to your brothers.  They should be your very best friends.  You are a very good boy.  Merry Christmas!
-Santa

Dear Daniel Clayton Jackson,
What a good boy you have been this year!  My elves have been watching and tell me you are good to your brothers.  This knight is SIR DANIEL.  He only fights on the same team as his brothers and only for good.  You should keep doing the same thing.  Work with your brothers to fight each battle.  I hope you like the castle!  Make sure you learn all the trick and traps to be ready for Lord Schnarfblatt. I think he's hiding somewhere, maybe near the Christmas tree.  Merry Christmas!!
-Santa

Dear Joseph Peter Jackson,
You are a very good boy!  You are on the nice list this year.  My elves tell me you have been an especially good big brother to William.  Help your brothers fight the dragon and don't let him steal the turkey anymore!  Also watch out for Lord Schnarfblatt's sneaky knights.  When I was bringing your presents they kept hiding by the wreath above the couch.  Keep being a good boy and a good brother.  Dan & Will & John should be your best friends.
-Santa
P.S. This knight is SIR JOSEPH

Dear William Hirschi Jackson,
You are the youngest brother of the Jackson brothers clan of brave knights.  This knight is SIR WILLIAM.  Listen to your brothers and they will teach you how to be a good knight.  They love you very much.  Make sure you all protect Queen Jessica.  Oh and don't eat any of the pieces to the castle.  Keep being a very good boy.
-Santa

Another favorite part of Christmas for me was having the kids exchange names and helping them each make a present for the person who's name they drew.  Definitely something we'll be doing every year.  

John picked Will's name.  John came up with the idea to paint Will a picture that he could look at when he woke up in the morning.  He painted a house and a nighttime sky with stars and a moon.  I bought a large canvas for him and let him give my oil paints a try... don't know if I'll be sharing those again, but I do love how it turned out.

Daniel picked Joe's name.  Pete helped Dan with the project.  Bought a piece of wood and drilled holes in the top to set crayons inside.  Dan wrote "Merry Christmas To Joe From Dan" on the side, then Pete traced over the letters with a wood burner.

Joe picked Dan's name.  Dan loves loves LOVES Legos, so naturally we had to do something for his Legos.  We bought an old printer's drawer at an antique shop for $20, turned the drawer on its side and glued old Lego pieces to the bottom of each square to make a large Lego Minifigure display case (got the idea from my friend Allison).  It can hold 89 Minifigures!  Semi-homemade.

Will picked John's name.  Being 9 months old, there wasn't too much Will could make for John, so I took the reigns and made a little builders kit he can use to build forts and other things.  I cut a bunch of PVC pipes, bought various connector pieces, then turned an old pillow case into a drawstring bag to keep everything in.

This was Will's one present: a new high chair.  I found it for $25 at the same antique shop I got the printer's drawer to use for the Lego display case.  I've been wanting an old classic wooden high chair like this for quite some time and was thrilled to find it at such a good price!  Say goodbye to the monstrous, plastic high chair that is turning yellow and gets food stuck under all the cushions.

I had to throw this picture in here.  We had a white Christmas this year, which was so much fun.  We all went sledding at a small hill down the street on Christmas Day.  Everyone has fun in the snow, but John takes the cake for loving the snow.  Not a day has passed since the snow has been here that John hasn't put on all his gear and ventured out to build a snowman, work on a snowfort, sled, have a snowball fight or just lay in the snow.  No one wanted to go out with him a couple days ago, so he went by himself.  I looked out 15 minutes or so later and saw he laying down in the middle of the driveway in the snow.  I don't know how long he had been sitting there, but it made me laugh.  He seriously just loves it.