We have been having a lot of Christmas fun in anticipation of the big day. December last year was spent getting ready to move, so this year has been a breeze <insert sarcastic laugh here>. Mostly, it has been fun to try to celebrate the holidays with Trey in mind. He has been having such fun talking about Santa and singing Christmas songs. Reminds a busy working mama what Christmas is all about.
This angel chime was one of my favorite Christmas decorations growing up.
Trey looks like he loves it, but what he is really doing is laughing hysterically because I am trying to keep him from blowing out the candles.
All of the hard work I did to make this advent calendar was TOTALLY worth it because my boy loves putting on the ornament every day.
In fact, since he has discovered that the felt sticks to the felt without me pinning it on, I have found all of the ornaments on the tree more than once.
In 1994 I studied in Paris for a semester and met some really special friends. I spent the semester traveling with some great guys - Brandon, Scott, and Damon, and amazingly we are all still in touch almost 20 years later. A few weeks ago, Damon and his wife were passing through town and we met them for lunch. Sitting across the table with our spouses and my 3.5 year old was a little different than our days in Barcelona or Prague, but it is so fantastic that we are still in touch. Love it.
Kris and John had their annual white elephant party for Kris's work people. We are always invited even though Randy doesn't officially work for her, and it is fun to catch up with OHSU friends. What I will say is that it's not as much fun when you have a kid in tow... this is the only picture I got of Trey dressed up for the party. The rest of the night was spent trying to keep him from crying because the other kids were in his space or on his "stage." Trey is used to having full run of Kris and John's house, so sharing is pretty hard.
Christmas cookies is one of Trey's favorite part of Christmas. This year we shared the event with Grady. I am not sure they liked the decorating as much as the eating, but it was fun to see them together, as always.
One of the best features of our "new" house is the fireplace. Watching Trey chillaxin' in front of the fireplace with the Christmas tree lit up and decorated with my ornaments from childhood, Randy's ornaments from the past 9 years (of us knowing each other), and Trey's newly started collection is pretty awesome.
Sandy has a tradition of making gingerbread houses with her grandkids. We were hoping to make it down there this year, but it didn't work out (good thing because Snowstorm 2013 happened that weekend). Sandy was super thoughtful and made a house for Trey and Grady and delivered them on her annual shopping trip to Portland. Trey LOVES his house. One night we were Facetiming with Sandy and my dad, and Sandy asked Trey if he had eaten any of his gingerbread house. Trey responded, "No, they're decoration," and Sandy, in her grandmotherly way, said, "No, it's candy." I wish I could have captured the look on Trey's face. He promptly ran out and chose a piece of the gingerbread house to eat. Thanks a lot, Sandy.
My colleague, Sarah, had her baby in mid-November after two months of bedrest. Everett is such a blessing, and we are all so happy that he is here and healthy. Last weekend I went and "babysat" for Sarah which basically meant holding the baby for 1.5 hours while she took a nap. Bouncing and shushing a baby brought back so many memories. So did Baby Everett wearing Trey's clothes...this little monster sleeper and the doggie hat were Trey's. I can't believe he was ever that small!
That night we went to Alpenrose with Randy's fishing BFF Jason and his family. The boys love seeing each other, and it was fun to watch them run around and play. We could have met in an empty parking lot and they would have been fine. Unfortunately, the line for Santa was too long, but they had fun seeing the trains and the animals.
Trey's preschool had a Christmas program. I videotaped it, but Randy made fun of me for that and I won't subject you to the boredom of listening to preschoolers singing three Christmas songs. What I will say is this is the first program where Trey didn't leave the group to come sit on my lap, so that is progress. Also, he was more interested in what was in his pockets than singing, but oh well.
After the program, we went to the mall to see Santa. I must say that whoever created the online signup for the line to see Santa is an effing genius. Thanks to this amazing invention, we waited in line for less than 10 minutes. The downside is that the Santa was really creepy looking. I wish I could have whisked Trey away to another Santa who wasn't so plastic looking, but it was too late for that.
Sunday Grady came over for a while to play. He is such a doll, and I love watching him and Trey play. This day was especially fun because the boys played together (sometimes they ignore each other), and I got some good footage of them having a great time.
Cousins dancing...
Tomorrow is Christmas Eve, and we are anticipating a fun-filled holiday with Grandma and Grandpa Clark, Grandpa Gerts, and Santa. I am so thankful for special time with our family, and I cannot wait for Trey to open all of his gifts.
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