Christmas Season 2014

Every year I feel pressure around Christmas. Pressure to spend a certain amount of money, pressure to make time for extended family member & friends.  I feel pressure to be June Cleaver, to sew homemade pajamas, craft homemade gifts, host meals and bake cookies. Any time I am in public or around people I feel pressure to sing the songs, hum the tunes and be jolly.  I don't think I am alone. By the time we ring in the new year I am so over Christmas the last thing I want to do is talk about it or blog about it! So, here I am in March.  I think I'm ready to talk about Christmas but it could be a bumpy ride.

As a family we are really enjoying this next stage of family life. The kids are old enough to follow directions and yet not too old to become easily board by the annual repetition of some of our traditions. They are not only interested but they both become fully engaged in any activity we do.This Holiday season we did some new stuff and some old stuff plus all of our families regular Christmas traditions such as Family Pictures and Elf on the Shelf.

 

We enjoyed some holiday snow over Thanksgiving weekend.

 We enjoyed watching our friends cheer in the Marysville Christmas Parade.

The Kids & I enjoyed the Annual Holiday Auction at Darcy Read Memorial Co-op Preschool.

 we visited the Coates Family Farm to cut down our Tree.

 

The past few years we have skipped the visiting Santa part of the holidays.  We did it the first two years we had kids.  Then we had a more than distasteful experience.  We sat in line for almost 2 hours, and paid $40 for an image of of children crying!  Of course they were crying, they could feel our tension & crankiness and then we handed them to a stranger & said, "Say Cheese!"

This year we encountered Santa twice.  Both times with smiles and shreaks! First, Josie & I went to the mall for a few things & she saw Santa from down the hall, immediately got giddy & asked to say "Hi".  The second time we saw Santa was at the Christmas tree farm.  The Santa was kind of grouchy and Issac said the elves needed to make him some lunch!

 We used our tree trimmings to make homemade Wreaths.

We decorated the tree together. Then Josie spent everyday moving the decorations around.

 We visited Snowflake Lane in Bellevue.

We visited the Botanical Gardens in Bellevue.

We baked & decorated cookies for Santa.

I also got to volunteer in the kids classes. 

 Josie's class made pine cone trees & Issac's class made Gingerbread houses.

Christmas can be exhausting for our family.  Living far away from our families & having two sets of in-laws means that this year we celebrated Christmas four times.  Plus, Josie was sick. Tyler currently works night shift & had to work overnight on Christmas Eve. We started off Christmas morning at home.  Tyler came home from work and we enjoyed a cup of coffee before the kids woke up and attacked the pile of presents under the tree. Then we loaded up in the car and drove three hours north to Ferndale to spend the rest of Christmas & the day afterwards with my family. On Saturday we loaded up in the pouring rain & headed south; stopping at Tyler's Mom's house for Christmas with his Mom, her husband, two step brothers and his brother Jayson & his wife Andalyn. 

Above- Santa brought Android tablets.

Bellow- the kids at Auntie Nicole's behind their gift piles.

The kids got new bikes for Christmas from Grandma Laura & Grandpa Mark.

 

Although Josie looks happy in most the pictures above, that is while she was on Mortin. Christmas eve night she was up most the night crying but uncommunicative over what was wrong. While we were in Ferndale she spent most her time sleeping on Uncle Warren & she cried when we got off the freeway in Marysville to see Tyler's family beacuse she wanted to go home and see her doctor.  After spending a couple of quick hours eating and opening gifts we drove home.  I took Josie to Multicare & missed their closing time by 9 minutes due to holiday hours.  I then took Josie to the Emergancy room in Auburn & spent five hours waiting to be seen to find out she had been suffering from a double inner ear infection. 

Josie got the meds she needed & was feeling better in time to ring in the new year.  There is nothing worse than not knowing what is causing your child pain.  I hope that your holiday season was stress free & pain free. :-)