We started with a couple of days
of just some fun family time before the celebrations began. That is when we did some of our serious
baking. We had a long weekend before
Christmas Eve and just enjoyed getting ready to celebrate and counting down the
days till Christmas. The day before
Christmas Eve we celebrated in Coweta with gifts and pizza. It was super relaxing and fun. The weather even allowed us to take pictures
outside without our coats on. The kids
got fun remote control cars that they raced around the house. On Christmas Eve, Mom’s family came over for
dinner. We enjoyed a big yummy meal and
opened gifts with extended family. The
kids got a special gift that Papa would have wanted them to have as he loved
Christmas so much. It was really sweet
to see their reactions and their eyes really did light up like he would have
wanted. They got fancy sleeping bags and
a special toy to enjoy. There were way
too many other fun presents and it seems like the kids kept opening and opening! It was so much fun!
Trying to sneak a pic of all three "Gallimore" kiddos
That night when our guests had left we
settled down for bed and read Twas the Night Before Christmas (a family
tradition). The kids put out cookies for
Santa, tiny cookies for the elves and water for the reindeer. So thoughtful!
We kept our Christmas Day to just
the four of us so we could soak up each moment and not feel rushed. It was such a great day! The kids woke up ready to open and we
convinced them to hang back until at least 7, maybe even 7:30. Mom stuck the pullapart bread in the oven to
bake and we went to see what Santa brought us.
Ben was pleased with Star Wars Legos, video games and other wish list
items. Elizabeth was excited about Doc
McStuffins and her Barbie set with puppies.
The unexpected surprise from Santa of a Barbie microphone was the star
of the day. Or actually it made her
become the star of the day. We enjoyed
lounging around most of the day and just playing. We packed that evening to head to Kansas, but
that was the most work we did all day.
We headed to Kansas for a few
days on the 26th. The kids
were eager to show off a few of their new toys, but they were so excited as
they knew that more were coming. They
waited patiently until cousin Brynna arrived and we settled on opening gifts
the next morning. The kids enjoyed more
treats from Santa as he left them a stocking full of fun in Kansas as
well. They were thrilled to open more
family gifts and played the rest of the day with all of their new things. In addition to their new things, they enjoyed
a lot of play time in the basement with the ping pong table, kitchen, pool
table, mini trampoline and lots of puzzles and games. It was nice to be together.
