Christmas Eve Celebrations

We woke up on Christmas Eve to find our Elf on the Shelf "Panda" hanging onto our star on our Christmas tree.  Today is the last day we will hunt for Panda before he flies back to the North Pole.  George and Clara will miss searching for him every morning.  Until next year Panda!

We started the morning with a yummy breakfast including a sweet treat...hot chocolate!

 

We spent some time playing upstairs in our playroom before getting dressed for the day.

Then we made some yummy cookies to leave out for Santa Claus that night.

 

We enjoyed lunch, a nap, and some more play time before we got ready for church with Grammy Quinn.  Mommy may be biased, but she thought we were the most beautiful children there.  George and Clara were also very well behaved.  They sat through the entire hour and fifteen minute service without any catastrophes!

Then we headed to Grammy and Grandpa Quinn's house for dinner.  We ate lots of yummy food and played with some of our favorite people...Grammy and Pop-pop!  We missed our Uncle Jay this year who couldn't make it home for Christmas.  He was in our thoughts and we sent lots of love to Atlanta!

 

We went home to put out our cookies for Santa Claus on the plates that we made at our play date.

Some for Santa....

one for me!

Then we all headed to bed excited to see what Santa would leave under the tree!

New Christmas Traditions

We spent a few evenings this holiday season walking at night in our neighborhood to look at Christmas lights.  It was wonderfully chilly so we enjoyed the sights all bundled up.  I think this may be a new Christmas tradition in our family.  We all loved it!

Ready to go!

Our house...a little winter wonderland!

One of Clara and George's Favorites.  They loved all the lights and snowmen.

Santa Claus!!

One of Mommy's favorites...classically Christmas!

Look at those lights!!

Sweet smiles!!

The Best Christmas Lights in Kingwood

If you live in or close to Kingwood and you haven't been to the train houses, then you are missing out.  There are two families in Woodstream that decorate their front lawns with amazing lights and electric trains.  You actually park your car and explore their front yard that they transform into a winter wonderland.  George and Clara were in awe the first time we went.  We visited for the second time tonight and they were still mesmerized by the beauty.  I don't know who this family is, but I am so thankful they share their amazing Christmas spirit.  What a gift!

Beautiful lights!

 

Trains, trains everywhere!!

Clara was ready to climb onto this ferris wheel!

George the elf.

Clara the elf.

This is as close to snow as we get in Texas!

I'm one lucky Mommy! All smiles!

George!  That is not a real candy cane!

Riding Thomas the Train.  She loved it!

Enjoying every moment.  Sweet little man!

The Kelley's Christmas Play Date

My friend Lisa sure knows how to throw a play date.  She had five Christmas crafting stations for the kids and all the Mommies brought a snack to share.  We made a snowman out of marshmallows, reindeer food, a photo frame ornament, decorated a Christmas cookie, and made a cookie plate for Santa.  I was so sad I forgot my camera because George and Clara were having so much fun!  Thank you Kelley family for a wonderful morning.  Everything was great!

Cookies For Santa Love, Clara and George

KAMOM Christmas Lunch

We had a great lunch at Spring Creek Barbeque for our KAMOM Christmas lunch.  They have a great room for private parties.  At the location close to home, the staff is so helpful and friendly.  They often carry our trays for us since we are all wrangling multiples!  It is just a great family place.  We munched on some yummy bbq, made edible Christmas trees, and participated in an ornament exchange.  George and Clara had so much fun!  Merry Christmas KAMOM friends.  I can't adequately express just how much I love this group of families. 

Edible Christmas Trees - an upside down sugar ice cream cone, coated in green frosting, and decorated with candy.  So simple and fun!

George ate most of the frosting.

George's tree - adding the gingerbread man

Clara's tree - loving the coconut snow!

George got an elf ornament

Clara got three ornaments! A snowman, a bell, and an M&M man.

Thanks for the fun KAMOM friends!!

George and Clara's Gingerbread House Workshop

We invited some of our KAMOM friends over for a Christmas play date.  We all decorated Gingerbread houses.  I made the houses ahead of time with graham crackers and using Martha Stewart's Royal Icing recipe.  It is really easy but I have to admit I needed John's help to set all the walls and the roof. 

I moved our family room furniture out of the way and taped down some plastic Christmas table cloths to set up the workshop.

I set up a candy bar in our kitchen with plastic bowls for the Mommies to collect the candy for their kiddos.

Each kiddo got a cup full of frosting and a popsicle stick to spread the icing on their house.

 

George and Clara were very excited to see all of their friends and to decorate the houses.

There were 15 kiddos making gingerbread houses and we all had so much fun!  There was icing and candy everywhere!!

After we finished decorating our Gingerbread houses, we all enjoyed some sweet treats.

We had such a wonderful time with all of our friends.  Merry Christmas!!!