Christmas Party

What says Christmas fun like yummy food, dirty santa, and LOTS of Christmas movies?  Well, that's exactly what we did on Saturday night.  We had some of our extended family and friends from the college over to our house for some Marlett Christmas fun.  A good time was had by all, especially the kids, because, unlike our annual Halloween scary movie event, they could attend all of THESE festivities.  They ate with us, watched fun Christmas movies and were our official helpers during the dirty santa game.  They were great and I think they had a really good time. 
This is the kids' official eating spot so they don't spill anything on the rug but can still watch t.v.

Bryan and Amanda brought over a basket of Christmas "happies" for us.  One of the things they brought for the kids was washcloths compressed into shapes that expanded in water...the kids and Amanda were trying them out.

Chance and Ava were the present-passer-outers.

They were waiting for the next number to be called...

Guess what I won?  A Sonic gift card.  How appropriate!  Someone loves me...

Ethel the mouse...a thrift store find.  Look for it at another dirty santa game near you coming soon! :)

Also funny: a used bigmouth bass.  Sometimes it sang the way it was supposed to and other times it made a horrible sound which made the whole thing even funnier.

Amanda was also a lucky winner of the night.  She got a Starbucks card.  woohoo

A Christmas Favorite

I got the idea for the Christmas candy countdown from a friend last year and the kids LOVED it, so, of course, I had to do it again!  I used to do a Christmas chain with them every year, which they did like, but the one with candy is even better (and cheaper than an advent calendar).  

All you do is pick out your candy of choice (the kids like Hershey Kisses, Daddy likes Reece's Peanut Butter Cups).  Then you cut a long piece of plastic wrap and line the candy in a row according to how many days you need.  Wrap the candy in a line and separate each piece with curling ribbon.  Then every night before bed, cut off the bottom piece and enjoy! :)

The kids cut the ribbon and line them up for me, but always want me to to the tying.  They get too tired and their hands hurt.  We drink hot chocolate and listen to Christmas music, too, so there is even more Christmas fun to be had.  I was really proud of myself for finding an awesome hot chocolate sampler at Sam's.  It had tons of flavors and will definitely last throughout the season.  Unfortunately, I guess it was too fancy because the kids have been unimpressed to far.  Back to the basics for them.  They want just plain jane hot cocoa.  Alas, it is going to be up to Mommy and Daddy to finish off the entire box.  (At the rate I'm going, I could probably finish it myself.  It is quite yummy!)

Well, there you have it.  Christmas fun day #4! :)

O Christmas Tree

I usually don't have little trees for the kids' rooms, but when I saw these very cute, tiny trees at Hobby Lobby for 50% off, I couldn't resist!  It took me quite awhile to figure out which of the numerous mini accessories to get, but I finally decided and hence: Christmas fun day #3.

 The kids were very excited to have their very own trees this year.  I think their very favorite part is that I actually got them lights to put on, too (a nice touch on my part!).  They keep them on all the time and the little trees provide a nice Christmas glow when they sleep.  Both insist that they no longer need the bathroom light for a night light anymore...we'll see about that.  It THAT were true, these trees may be a double bonus (and perhaps we'll just keep them in their bedrooms year round!) :)

Hanging of the Greens

For our second day of Christmas fun, we went with Daddy to Hanging of the Greens at Mid-America.  This is a fun time of snacks and crafts (ornaments, gingerbread houses, hot chocolate, fried donuts, pictures with Santa, etc.).  This is also a nostalgic event for Brian and I, something that stems back all of the way to our dating days!  The kids (especially Ava) like to go every year, so we make it a priority even though it is kind of late for them to be out.  They both made ornaments and Ava spent a good chunk of her evening making a gingerbread house that turned out really cute!  One of the highlights for me was spending some quality time with Chance who was done with his crafts after, ohhh...about 5 minutes!  Sometimes he's not crazy about being around crowds of people, so we just sat on the floor and talked for quite awhile.  He really seemed to open up that night and told me about all kinds of things that he usually keeps to himself.  It was very nice to spend that time with my son.  I love it when he lets me peek into his life.  He is getting older all the time, and I am acutely aware that he is not my "little" boy anymore.  I am very proud of the person he is becoming.







Just a side note, Justin (Brian's brother) was also in town this particular evening for a business trip.  This was a really big deal because he hasn't been to Oklahoma since Brian and I got married.  Unfortunately, it was a really quick, busy trip for him, so there wasn't a lot of time, but we did go to dinner before the stuff at the college and he got to come to our house for about 5 minutes.  It was great to see him and I'm kicking myself for not taking pictures.  It was a good evening all around. :)

And So It Begins...

I began a tradition with the kids last year of doing something "Christmas-y" every day in December until Christmas day.  We had so much fun with it last year that we are doing it again! Tradition states that the first day of our 25 days of Christmas is a pajama present.  The original goal was to give them Christmas pajamas, but I ended up finding regular p.j.'s that I liked better, so I went with those.  Here are some pics of their pajamas they opened.  We are ready to get our Christmas festivities started! :)

Ava's 1st Girl Scout Ceremony

Ava had her Girl Scout Investiture Ceremony a couple days ago.  It was her first special event with the Girl Scouts and she was pretty excited about it.  All of the different divisions (Daisys, Brownies, and Juniors) all had a special ceremony.  It included a song from each group, and everyone got their pin and a certificate...and of course, COOKIES!  A good time was had by all.  I even recorded Ava's little song, but I'm feeling too lazy to put it on here right now, so coming soon.....

So, I'm Gonna Cheat a Little....Okay, a Lot...

I'm sure all two of my readers out there have noticed that I've been a little absent lately.  I just can't seem to get my act together following my computer mishaps.  All of the problems I had with the computer got me out of the blogging habit and it has been nearly impossible for me to get my rhythm back.  With that being said, Christmas is upon us.  I did the 25 days of Christmas with my kids last year and I had a wonderful time talking about it and I need to begin soon. However, I have discussed before that I cannot blog about current events when I am missing the rest of the sequence.  So, here you go.  I am cheating.  Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the last few months.  Yes, I am still taking pictures, I am just not doing anything with them.  

For those of you who actually want NEWS...the school year is going great so far.  Chance is loving 3rd grade and recently started taekwondo.  Can I just say, I know I'm his mom and I have to say nice things (lol), but this kid can do an awesome push up! I am also really proud of how well he is doing in school.  He loves to read.  We are very happy to have an avid reader since Brian and I are also no strangers to reading.  

Ava is also enjoying kindergarten.  Her teacher's main comment about Ava is that she is HYSTERICAL.  She has a story about Ava on almost a daily basis.  I should really be keeping some sort of journal.  Her extra-curricular activity of choice is Girl Scouts.  As you can see, we really are keeping quite busy...it's no wonder I haven't had time to blog...haha. 

Brian and I went to Eureka Springs over fall break and it was wonderful to get away for a few days.  He also recently spoke at the Mississippi State Youth Convention....AND I got to go with him.  It was great to hear him speak.  I rarely get to do that anymore. :)  Perhaps the biggest news of all is that he graduates with his masters in a few, short weeks!!  His last Thursday night class is actually this week.  I am SO proud of him.

Well, there you go...a brief update.  Now enjoy the pictures from the last couple of months.  Hopefully, I'm back on track now...fingers crossed, but don't hold your breath~!