Happy Christmas Eve

The kids had a wonderful Christmas Eve. They were so excited they could hardly contain themselves. In the morning, we made roll-out cookies for Santa and painted them with edible paint. I also pulled out my leftover Christmas sprinkles and let them just go nuts. (They needed to be used up). Kate used 2 little jars of Christmas sprinkles on 4 cookies....LOL Those suckers were LOADED! At this point in the day I had misplaced my camera, so I don't have photos...but it way way fun and the cookies turned out pretty cute.That evening, we went out to Subway for our annual Subway sandwich dinner. This started waaaaay back when I was a kid. I think it originally started because it was soooo stressful for mom tying up all the loose ends on Christmas Eve to make the awesome Christmases we had. So one year, instead of making dinner, Dad offered to take us to Subway. It worked out so well that we have been doing it ever since. Anyways, we went to the same Subway that we went to last year and THEY REMEMBERED US!!! It was actually the same two ladies working there as last year. LOL I thought they looked familiar. Last year, we overwhelmed them with our group of 10 and explained our tradition. My mom had been around a lot of perfume that day (she is VERY allergic and it can cause seizures) and on our way out she told them "I love you!" They looked at us and we looked at them and laughter erupted. This year, the lady asked my mom if she was going to say good-bye the way she did last year....she said "you only tell us you love us once a year after all" and laughed. And so....we ordered our food and on our way out, mom shouted "I love you!" to the Subway ladies. Aaaahhh a new tradition is born! We took our food home (so they wouldn't have to clean up after us on Christmas Eve 30 minutes before close) and feasted.
After dinner, we went out and looked at Christmas lights. They were really beautiful and we had a great time. I always forget how much this gets me into the Christmas spirit until we do it. This year the most notable was probably ginormous Santa. I have NEVER seen a Santa that big! I wanted to go back and get my camera to take a picture of it, but I didn't think I would be able to find it again since we were winding in and out of neighborhoods. He didn't look inflatable...I don't know what he was made out of, but he was literally 2 stories tall in front of this house. I think that Dallin would have maybe reached his knee (and he is 43 inches tall). I think it really would put the fear into kids if they hadn't been good that year and saw GIANT Santa coming toward their house!
On the way home from viewing neighborhood lights, we assigned parts for the annual reading/acting out of the nativity. This year, Dallin was Joseph. Kate was Mary. Christopher reprised his role as the donkey (hee hee). I was a shepherd with my flock of Little People Animals. Michael and the Elders were the 3 wise men. My mom was the angel, and my dad was the narrator. We then scrambled to find costumes in 10 minutes or less. It is always fun to see what everyone comes up with. The creativity is part of the fun. Unfortunately, my camera died and I only got a few pictures of this, but you can see it is pretty cute.
Finally, we helped the kids wrap their gifts and we sat around the fire in the living room while the kids danced and spun around to Christmas music playing on the stereo. It made me smile to see them so happy. I loved that their little eyes were sparkling and alive with the magic and spirit of Christmas, and I could feel it myself. I remember dancing and spinning in the living room so full of joy I could burst, and it brought those feelings back watching my sweet children on Christmas Eve.

We went home, put out magic reindeer food (oatmeal and glitter) on the front lawn, got the kids ready for bed, and put out cookies for Santa. Each kiddo picked one cookie they made and put it on Santa's plate. Kate then got up to the table and took a bite out of one when no one was watching. It was about this time that Christopher said (not knowing she had done this) "Don't eat Santa's cookies or he will be mad!". Kate had this horrible look on her face of shock and horror. She completely froze. At first I couldn't figure out why (I hadn't seen her do it either), but I looked down at the table in front of her and noticed the cookie with the bite out of it just as her expression melted from horror into a completely heartbroken expression. She teared up and began to just sob with her head in her hands. It really broke my heart! She was so upset. She was sobbing so hard I had to repeat myself several times for her to calm down enough to talk and eventually stop crying. I told her it was ok since she didn't know and helped her pick a new cookie. I assured her Santa wouldn't be mad at her and he would like the new cookie just as much. I then placed her gently back on her chair and told her to go ahead and finish the cookie she started (after all it was Christmas Eve). What a sweet little girl! I sure love my tender hearted sweetpea. Christopher read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas' to the kids and they were quickly tucked and asleep in a matter of minutes (we had intentionally deprived them of naps today...heehee). Then it was just Christopher and I, enjoying Christmas Eve stillness and waiting for Santa! It was a truly wonderful Christmas Eve.

Graham Cracker Construction Company

This year I seemed to not be quite as "with it" as I would have liked for the Christmas holidays. I think that we were passing around colds and whatnot so many things we would normally do during the season were missed. We didn't do letters to Santa or even visit him for that matter. This makes me somewhat sad and I am really going to make an extra effort to make sure that I plan better to not have this happen again (to the extent that planning could have helped.....sickness just happens lol).
But we DID do our annual graham cracker houses! We got together with my mom, Michael, and the missionaries and built our masterpieces! I was very happy that this was not missed. It was really fun this year because the kids had the attention spans to actually stay with a parent and complete building one. They also were more able to say what they wanted and didn't want on their houses so they were a little more "theirs" instead of mine or Christopher's.
Christopher paired up with Dallin to build their house.Dallin especially was pretty good at squeezing the frosting, building walls and deciding where he wanted things put. He was able to do a lot of things independently after he was shown how once or twice. I think he used a whole tube of icing on the 1st story roof of his house....I am not sure why....but I suppose it is his creative perspective. It was really fun to see him working with his dad to build this. He really enjoys his time with Christopher. Here he is with his finished product. I love how proud he looks! He is really growing up. He tells me all the time "I am a big boy now. I can do LOTS of things!"
Kate and I opted to go with the castle theme for the graham cracker house this year (not a big surprise considering her princess infatuation). It turned out pretty good...even if it did completely collapse halfway through....and the towers were too big and heavy. LOL Kate didn't seem to notice and that is what was important. She liked helping me squeeze the frosting. Our biggest accomplishment this year was that we came up with the "castle" theme (which the boys borrowed :) AND we even came up with the drawbridge. I thought it was really quite clever....the boys also "borrowed" this. Kate's favorite part of doing the houses was decorating. She took to it right away and was surprisingly dexterious when it came to placing M&Ms along the seams that she chose. She was focusing so hard that she was pulling a "Michael Jordan" and totally had her tongue sticking out in concentration. I was really surprised when she picked up on that and started doing it ALL ON HER OWN! What a smartie! I really enjoyed working with her. Here she is with the finished product. You can't see it really well in the picture, but we also had chocolate bears jumping rope and marshmallow trees!
Some sampling was done and houses rose and fell, but a good time was had by all! I really love traditions!

Happy Thanksgiving

Yes....you read that correctly. It is Christmas Eve and I am wishing a Happy Thanksgiving. LOL Actually, I am just doing our Thanksgiving post. We had a wonderful one!
We were able to spend Christmas with Christopher's parents this year which was really fun. We went over and joined my entire family plust the missionaries who are staying with my parents. It was a huge group. I think we were up to 14 this year!
Grandma Kellogg made Kate and Maddie the cutest little pilgrim girl hats. They were REALLY darling.
Here is a view from the back. Also you can see Kate's totally awesome french braids I did (sort of...this was before the haircut)....and the rockin pumpkin bow I made her. She made them from a large sheet of white paper, some string, and a brad. Honestly, I think that woman could spin gold from straw. They were so cute and the girls loved wearing them (despite the fact Kate was looking onery in the picture....she was busy being jealous of Maddie...sigh). She had also brought some Thanksgiving party hats-a pilgrim boy one and a turkey/indian one. Dallin opted to wear the pilgrim boy one and looked just darling. Grandma found lots of ways to make things special!
We had a huge feast at Nana and Papa's house with everyone there. It was really cool to sit at the loooong table with so many people we loved and have such good food and company. Here is the view from one side of the table Here is the view from the other side of the table.
I had to laugh at my two very different children though. Dallin got the turkey leg and he just went after it like he had never seen food (anyone who has seen him eat knows this is not all that unusual...he also really loves chicken legs so he was in heaven) Anyways, here he is looking like a caveman and eating everything with his hands as fast as he can and Kate is sitting next to him...first insisting that she spread her napkin neatly underneath her place setting and then she ate very daintily with her silverware. It just cracks me up sometimes how they can be so different and be side by side. I went to take a picture of it....but Dallin got self conscious and decided to spread his napkin to....and use silverware....at least while the camera was out. LOL
After dinner, we enjoyed chatting and planning Black Friday shopping strategies, but the biggest event was when the kids went into the backyard and discovered........the new tire swing!!!! They were sooo excited and surprised. Papa had talked about getting one and they really wanted it bad! This one is super cute because it is shaped like a horse with stirrups and everything. The kids loved swinging and spinning. Honestly, I don't know how they walked a straight line and didn't throw up. They had a super fun time, and I just felt so happy just seeing the looks on their little faces. I was very thankful for such a wonderful family!

Cornocopia

Of course while Christopher's parents were in town....we made the traditional cornocopias! We actually did this for the first time last year in our little family, but it has been a tradition in Christopher's family for a very long time. Basically you can make little fruits, veggies, or whatever your heart desires out of a delicious almond fondant and you put it in a sugar cone. It really looks like a cornocopia. It's lots of fun to see what the kids come up with...and...it's delicious!
Our fondant had some issues with not being firm enough (I had the SAME issues last year) even though we almost doubled the amount of powdered sugar to improve the situation. I was happy to know that it wasn't just the fact that I was doing something wrong. We had the pros with us and they had the same problem. Apparently, it is just Texas humidity and if you leave it out overnight it is the PERFECT consistency in the morning! This is important to remember for next year.
Uh-oh....Texas humidity strikes again! Kate was rolling some red fondant into an apple....but the heat from her little hands melted it first! We found that a nice coating of powdered sugar on the table and hands really helped the stickiness.
Grandma showed the kids how to make several of the different fruits and vegetables including apples, oranges, pea pods, peppers, watermelons, and bananas. It was really cool to see all the different ideas she had and how to do them.
Dallin was pretty self-sufficient this year. He was really able to do a lot of it himself with a little instruction and help now and then. Grandma helped him out by adding her masterpieces to his stash of cornocopia food. In this picture you can see the red pepper on the right....a lot of the items kind of melted and are harder to make out. The orange blob in the middle with the brown spots is the pizza Dallin made. Pretty clever! He even gave it some red sauce. Here is the picture of Dallin's cornocopia finished.
Kate was mostly interested in making an apple or two, squishing the fondant, and eating as much as she could. I mostly made/helped her make hers.
Here is a closeup of her fruits and veggies. In this picture you can see a watermelon, a pineapple, a pumpkin, a strawberry, a banana, and a pea pod.
Here she is getting her horn ready. If you can't tell...she has eaten many of the "veggies" already
And the finished product.....

Our Trip To San Antonio

So, everyone knows that when you come to Texas....you HAVE to visit San Antonio to see the Alamo. I think it is an unwritten law somewhere. Since I was a kid in Dallas, every relative that came to Texas (and we have A LOT of them...who come separately) has wanted to go see the Alamo. This has only increased since my parents moved to Austin (much CLOSER to the Alamo). So.....at the risk of sounding terribly un-Texan, I can say that I don't really care for driving out and visiting the Alamo. I remember thinking it was fun as a young kid, pouting and brooding about having to go AGAIN as a teen....now...FINALLY...as an adult, I am finding more and more things that I can enjoy about the trip to San Antonio.
So when Christopher's parents came to town....guess what they wanted to see....? LOL Yep...the Alamo. Christopher's mother grew up her first 13 years in Texas and never saw it, so it was one of those things that simply could not continue to be undone. And I have to say that the trip to San Antonio with Christopher's parents has been one of my very favorite trips there. I even find myself looking forward to going back again so that I can see some things I didn't get to explore as much as I would have liked. It was really fun!
Of course, we started at the Alamo. On the walk there, we passed a monument with names of those who fought at the Alamo. Did you know a Kellogg fought there!? Neither did I! It was pretty cool to know we had a relative fighting there.
(Johnny Kellogg is the bottom right hand name in the above picture :)
Once we got to the Alamo, my kids spotted the police officers there and started jumping up and down and pointing "look mommy! look it's REAL cowboys!" Yep....the police officers there wear cowboy hats. LOL My kids were thrilled to get their pictures taken with REAL cowboys. We quickly walked the kids through the Alamo and out the other side into the courtyard. Not being a history buff myself, and having seen the inside of the Alamo many times I find that I would rather skip the crowd and enjoy the presentations and scenery outside in the courtyard. Plus, the kids can run around a little more freely there. We told Christopher's parents to take as much time as they liked inside and to meet us in the courtyard when they were done. We really enjoyed exploring the courtyard with the kids. They really loved looking at the giant fish, exploring the cannons, and sitting in a carved out log pretending it was a boat. It is a really beautiful and spacious courtyard and you can overhear the presentations they give so it is quite relaxing.
By the time Christopher's parents came out and met up with us, the kids had noticed the HORSES pulling carriages outside the Alamo. They were VERY excited and impressed and definitely wanted to ride. Unfortunately, the rides were quite expensive so we proceeded on our way. However, the last driver in the line caught our attention and struck an amazing deal with Christopher's mom. So...we got to go on a carriage ride/tour!!! It was really cool! In all my visits to San Antonio, I have NEVER been on a carriage ride before. It was really cool to see things in San Antonio that I had not seen before and hear some information that I had not heard before. Plus, I don't think I have EVER been on ANY carriage ride before and I felt very important and had a great time. Our driver was very friendly and at the end of the ride, she bravely let both of my kids climb up in the front and help "drive" the carriage. They ate this up and were so very excited (and I thought it was pretty awesome too). The carriage ride gave us some ideas of other things to see in San Antonio on this trip or others in the future.
After the carriage ride, we decided to take Christopher's parents down on the river walk for a bit (also this way we could get to one of the places we saw on the carriage ride since it had a riverwalk entrance). I always think the riverwalk is beautiful and relaxing. It just has a fun and romantic vibe. There is the smell of good food, ducks on the river, waterfalls, plants, live music, shops....like a little town away from the town.
Once we had walked a little ways, we found the entrance to "Rainforest Cafe" which we had seen on the carriage ride and my mom had also told me about. It was a pretty cool place. It was a rainforest themed restaurant/shop. Even the tables and chairs were shaped like animals and some even had tails. There were big trees and mists and a lake with a "sleeping" crocodile. So we took the kids over to look at it and.......it popped its head up and started roaring. (It was animatronic of course). The kids both jumped and Kate shrieked. We had to laugh because the thing kept roaring and every time it did, Kate would scream....over and over and over. LOL Dallin also found a tree with a face. I think he must have jumped back 5 feet when it "bit" him and started talking. It was so funny.
We finally emerged to the street and enjoyed strolling past all of the interesting things there are to do in San Antonio. I was amazed at how much I had never noticed before. We saw crazy mirrors that distorted the kids bodies. They really got a kick out of that. We met wax Superman and a GIANT T-Rex head and arms. Kate wouldn't get near it at all without crying. Dallin was immediately interested, but when it started roaring and moving, he was pushing pretty hard against his daddy! We even saw "Stumpy", a creepy looking half-man with a spine sticking out at Ripley's Believe it or Not. He had a pretty scary voice synthesizer, but was handing out lollipops to the kids. At first Dallin was scared of him, but as soon as Stumpy produced candy, Dallin was totally willing to go and get it and talk to him. Kate, on the other hand,....did not care WHAT he had...she was going no where near the man and made her daddy get the sucker. I just kept thinking of the "stranger danger" footage of the guy saying "want some candy little boy?" and thinking that dallin would jump at the chance no matter WHO was giving it to him or WHAT they looked like. Hmmm...good....I guess we will be having that talk AGAIN...every day...for the rest of his life.
After that we were pretty pooped. We were having a wonderful time and hated to leave, but we needed to get back before we were too tired. It was really fun and probably one of the most enjoyable trips I have ever had to San Antonio. Hopefully, we will be able to do it again soon!