Oh the magic of Christmas! The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that mom would actually remember to put something in there. Oops! In fact, there were lots of Christmasy tasks that I'd neglected. The stocking goodies were a quick fix and luckily I had some great help finishing my gift wrapping....
"Tape please!"
"How did I get wrangled into this again?"
You may have noticed that our girl was not looking too hot while wrapping presents. And it wasn't because she wasn't happy about helping. Nope. That poor baby was feeling horrible with a leaky nose and watery eyes. I was totally beyond bummed that she was getting sick right before Christmas. I had been talking for a week straight about the excitement that Christmas morning would bring. It looked like all it might bring was a bunch of boogers. We did a little test run to see if she would be interested in toys. I grabbed from her pile of birthday presents (yes, we are still bringing in birthday presents from July) and set it up in the living room. To our delight, she got busy playing with her new toy and smiled a few times.
It only got better from that point on. She caught her second wind and started exploring. On her list of to-do's was feeding the pups. She had caught a glimpse of me geting dog food out of a closet in the laundry room so she weasled her way in there and began bringing food to put in their bowl piece by piece.
"Move it or lose it Lucy, I'm on a mission!"
After about fifteen minutes and bit of help from me, she had their bowl full....
Proud moment ;)
She began to perk up even more so I decided we would get dressed and run some last minute errands. Of course we had to put on her most festive attire for such a shopping trip as this one...
She proudly handed me the forks and spoons one by one....
She had us all laughing as he pushed her in circles while she helf her arm up on the back of the car and leaned back. Hot stuff!
Everything was ready for our celebrating to begin! The only thing missing were Bailey and Spencer. They pulled in around 6:30 and it was officially CHRISTMAS!!! Time to get this party started!!!!
"Did someone say it's time to open presents??"
"I don't have time for pictures. Just hand me my first gift please"
Like I mentioned above, my dad wanted to do something a little different this year. For as long as I can remember, we've celebrated on Christmas eve with soup, movies, presents, and family time at my parents house. I didn't even want to attempt to cook like my mom would've so we had a crockpot Christmas. Chicken and dumplings, meatballs and lil smokies along with lots of other finger foods to snack on. Easy to make, easy to clean up. Just the way I like it! I had declared this Christmas a pajama party and everyone happily participated!!
Hallie and Gman snacked on some appetizers earlier that evening while they waited for Aunt B and Spencer..
"A green chip? This doesn't seem right."
She was being a little doll baby. Her nose continued to run like a faucet and her cheeks were nice and rosy but she had the Christmas spirit that was for sure.
"I'm just trying to play the part...they have rosy cheeks right?"
She is still discovering her surroundings and has no problem making herself right at home. Take this cabinet in the laundry room that she has claimed as her own now....
"I hope you hadn't planned on using this one mom"
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that we had a bonified dog zoo that night. Our two dogs + my dad's dogs + Bailey and Spencer's pup = dog chaos. Good times for Hal though!
"Ok you guys! When mom says to take a picture you have to listen!"
As present time grew nearer she grew more weary. Her cheeks became rosier and her nose runnier. Although she kept a smile on her face most of the night it just wasn't the same Hal....
"I'm giving it my all but it's just not enough"
I thought maybe dressing the dogs up would put a smile on her face.....
"Is this really necessary?"
Hal was so over the waiting game and got busy passing out gifts....
"I can't read so you'll have to figure this part out."
"I think these belong to me judging my color and size"
It still wasn't time yet so she occupied herself with the new yahtzee game I have laying out on the table.
"Hello??"
"Ok, if we don't open those presents in the next ten minutes I'm going to bed"
"Hey you guys.....we look pretty ridiculous. Just sayin'"
Her first gift was a cute little Radio Flyer worm ride from Gman. We were so excited to see her jump on it.....
But she would have to wait. Assembly required. Gman to the rescue!
She was pretty clear about which present she wanted to open next....
"This is the ONE!"
Aunt B and Uncle Spencer surprised her with a Cozy Coupe car.....
"What kinda gas mileage does this thing get?"
We had the men putting together each toy as she'd open it. Gman was tackiling the worm....
Spencer was assembling the car.....
And Hal was helping out by looking at the construction of the wheels....
"It shows here that the red thingy goes on before the black thingy"
While the men worked, the women played with the puppies and laughed at the men doing the work. Bahaha!
Add a Radio Flyer wagon from Gman to the assembly line. Riley was up to bat for this one....
First toy assembly was complete and it was time to take a spin on her worm.....
Too cool for school
There was only one slight problem.....
She needs an extra couple of inches
It didn't stop her from trying to ride it though. With some help from Gman she bounced around in it for awhile. The other toys were still in Santa's workshop with Riley and Spencer banging their hammers and twisting their screwdrivers. Hallie was getting impatient and grabbed for a couple other packages under the tree....
Her very own purse
"Are you sure it's okay?"
She picked a good one. It was full of some classic books that I couldn't wait to read to my lil bookworm....
Hal got to take a ride in her wagon but never did get to test drive her Cozy Coupe. A missing part put it back in the body shop until mechanic Riley finds time to repair it. Bedtime was creeping up on us and we just had to sneak in a family pic before she went to bed.....
Hallie was ready for bedtime that night. Santa was on his way after all and she had to have those eyes closed! Us grown ups dug into the food and settled in for a movie. About a fourth of the way into the movie we decided that it was time to open presents. We were blessed with some amazingly generous gifts from Aunt B, Spencer and Gman. Thanks to them we will be hitting up Lowe's for some light fixtures, rugs and fans all courtesy of them. I was thrilled to watch Bailey and my dad open up their final gifts from me. The memory quilts were a hit!
The babe was nestled all snug in her bed while dreams of Christmas morning danced in her head. We blew up dad's air mattress and I said my goodnights to the crew, Riley was snoring within a minute or two. Bailey and Spencer packed up and they drove out of sight, Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night......
What a way to spend Christmas Eve. In our new home, surrounded by my family, honoring and remembering my momma, and watching Riley pull Hallie to bed in her new wagon......
Oh the magic of Christmas.....
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