ChristmasTree Farm 2011

Here we are, off to find the perfect tree for us for 2011!

 

Sophia's favorite thing to do was to hop on all the tree stumps.

 

YES! I think we found it. It is absolutely perfect.

 

 

 

 

 

Here is our tree, all loaded up in the cart and ready to go. We love watching all the young families picking their trees. Everybody is happy and everyone is wishing everyone else a "Merry Christmas!"

 

Meredith pauses to enjoy some hot chocolate by the bonfire.

 

Here is Clara shooting down the slide from the loft in the barn. She went down this slide at least a hundred times.

 

Kevin and Sophia watch the big girls on the slide.

 

This place SMELLS so amazing!!

 

The kids enjoy playing in the loft of the barn while we wait for our tree to be processed. It was a lazy day and we just enjoyed being at the tree farm and being together!

 

 

 

Clara was chosen to put the star on top of the tree this year.

 

The tree is trimmed! Hooray!

 

Kevin and I stayed up until midnight stringing cranberries and popcorn to make garland for the tree. Yes, he is wonderful. I told him, "I wonder how many husbands would do this for their wives after 10 years of marriage. Maybe on their first date. But, after ten years? You are wonderful."

 

We don't have many tree trimming traditions but we have carried over Kevin's family's tradition of making Peanut Blossom Cookies to munch on while we decorate. They are Kevin's favorite.

 

A New Advent Tradition & the Kids' Gingerbread House

This year we started a new Advent tradition that everyone is really loving so far. I got the idea from Megan last year. I wrapped a bunch of Christmas books that we own (most of them purchased from Half Price Books for $1.00 or less) and each day the kids take turns and open one new book to read together at breakfast time. The problem is that we currently only own 12 books. But I have a massive pile ready to pick up at the library and will be wrapping those to add to our stash so that it will last until Christmas Eve. They are LOVING this new tradition. We are definitely going to do it again next year.

 

Here are the girls decorating our annual gingerbread house. This is the first year they did it entirely by themselves! They are getting so BIG. They LOVE this tradition and it's so easy when you buy the pre-made box at Costco for $10. :) They wanted to do it early this year so that we could have it as part of the house decorations.

 

 

 

And, finally, I'm going to include this picture of Sophia so that someday she really believes me when I tell her she was a real pistol. She helped herself to my eye liner!! You are waaaaayyyy too young for makeup, darling, as evidenced by this photo: