Our Christmas

WARNING: Very long post ahead. :)

The Thorne family had such a fun Christmas this year. We started off Christmas Eve with the family service at our church. 

I always try to get a photo of the family in front of the church Christmas tree. This was the best we got this year after SEVERAL attempts.

This year Tuttle was old enough to participate in the Nativity walk during the reading of the Christmas story. He was less than thrilled with his assigned role of a sheep. I know this picture will have us laughing for years to come!

The service was perfect, and we could not wait for the Nativity walk to begin. Tuttle was the cutest sheep that ever walked the aisle of Peachtree Road United Methodist Church!

The service ended with the singing of traditional Christmas hymns complete with candlelight. I would be lying if I did not admit to tearing up watching our too big babies hold their little candles. They just looked so innocent and sweet. :)

After church we headed over to Aunt Peach's condo for the annual readings by Grandaddy and Daddy. We ate a yummy dinner and enjoyed a peaceful evening before the craziness of Christmas the next day. Everyone looks forward to the poetry and scripture every year, and Tuttle and Maggie are really starting to recognize a lot of the readings now, too.

Jay and I were expecting the kids to be up extra early the next morning to check out their Santa loot, but surprisingly everyone slept until almost 8:30! Maggie and Tuttle were thrilled with their presents. Maggie was most impressed with her bike and helmet while Tuttle loved his Lego kits (big surprise!) and his costumes.

Grandmommy and Grandaddy stopped by for a few minutes before heading to Athens. Tuttle and Maggie were not shy about showing off their new presents!

We arrived in Athens at Granny's house about 2pm. I brought my predictable Rotel cups to share. The house quickly filled up, and we had a great time playing the White Elephant game. 

Maggie and Tuttle really feel at home at Granny's house, and that was exactly our goal. Neither met Granny before she passed away, but they talk about her like their know her. She continues to have a big impact on our family even today. :)

We ended our busy Christmas Day with presents at Grandmommy and Grandaddy's house. We are totally overwhelmed with everyone's generosity every year. Even Holland received several gifts this year and her own stocking. Next year will be so much fun with three babies on Christmas!

Tuttle especially loved his new scooter and his Star Wars action figures. Maggie could not get enough of her Bitty Baby Twins and their doll-size salon chair to style their hair. The star of the show was my new pair of Frye boots!! We were all definitely spoiled!

The next day I took advantage of pretty weather and an even prettier front porch to snap some photos of my little girls. I am in love.

We drove home late Friday evening with two tired babies that quickly feel asleep before we hit the interstate road. 

We ended our Christmas celebration with the Corbitt clan at Larry and Beth's house. I was itching to get everyone outside to take pictures because the light was PERFECT.

We missed Gwen at Thanksgiving, so Tuttle and Maggie were eager to play with her the whole time. They have really started to play independently together, and it brings back a lot of fond memories of playing with my cousins at the same house as a child.

Jay and I rarely take a photo just the two of us. I love this man. :)

After devouring a delicious lasagna made by Beth, we started opening presents. The amount of presents grows every year, and everyone was really exhausted after all the gifts this year! I guess that is a good problem to have! I was so excited to give Grumps his gift this year. He is 100% Republican and not a fan of Obama to put it mildly. I found a huge blanket printed with Obama's Inauguration Speech word for word. Now he can snuggle up to Obama whenever he wants! Hahaha

Gram did not hesitate trying on Maggie's Strawberry Shortcake wig from Anne. I foresee this photo making the family calendar next year! It is not the best quality, but the content makes up for that!

We had the best Christmas filled with family, laughter, and way too many presents! The best part is that if you ask Maggie and Tuttle why we celebrate Christmas they know the real reason: Jesus. 

Tuttle's Christmas Party and The Preschool Christmas Program

We had a blast at Tuttle's preschool Christmas party yesterday morning. Kristen, Emily (Gigi's Mom), and I were in charge of it, and everything was so cute! I made the snowman cups and the reindeer sandwiches.

The biggest hits were the reindeer headbands and the gingerbread men for the kids to decorate. Kristen suggested the decorating activity, and every Dragon student took the task very seriously!

I love celebrating the holidays through the eyes of Tuttle and Maggie. Everything is so magical and fun. :)

Today was the annual preschool Christmas performance. Daddy was able to work from home and come to the show. 

Maggie has been practicing her song for weeks now, so we were eager to see her in action. She had been BELTING out the song to anyone that would listen, but her performance was a little more reserved. Her class sang a song about the shephards to the tune of "Mary Had A Little Lamb."

The Pre-K classes had the opportunity to dress up as characters from the nativity. Tuttle proudly wore his shephard costume. The Dragon class sang three songs with the other Pre-K classes. 

Tuttle gets to perform again tomorrow, and I am subbing at the preschool, so I will get to enjoy his sweet contribution again. We love our preschool and all the ways the classes celebrate the holidays.

One week until the BIG DAY......

Maggie's Christmas Party and Santa

I had so much fun planning Maggie's preschool Christmas party this week. I tried to get all crafty and researched some fun holiday treats on Pinterest. I ended up making chocolate reindeer doughnuts and creating snowman cups for her friends' water. I was thrilled that neither ended as a Pinterest fail. :)

Maggie is usually not a big eater, but she LOVED all the Christmas food and ate almost her entire plate.

All the Pound Puppy babies are so sweet, and I am happy that Maggie has these friends in her life.

After the party Maggie and I grabbed Tuttle from his class and headed to Phipps Plaza for our visit with Santa. While we were in line, Maggie and Tuttle wrote their lists to Santa. Tuttle has me spell out "bike," "Star Wars Legos," "costumes," and "Star Wars watch." He has been kind of vague about what he wants, so I know he will be very excited on Christmas morning.

Maggie was interested in Santa until it was her turn to sit in his lap. I guess this is year two with a crying baby in our Santa pictures. She did not last long until she was running to me!

Tuttle stayed put and was able to chat with Santa for a few minutes. He told Maggie that he really is a nice man.

I was able to convince Tuttle and Maggie to let me take a few pictures before we headed to lunch. I just love these babies to pieces!

I found a random storefront with the perfect holiday setting for one last picture. :)

We ended our fun morning with lunch at Johnny Rockets. Maggie and Tuttle pretty much only ate french fries, but sometimes you just go with it during Christmastime! :)

Lights, Music, Action!

I had been looking forward to our family visit to the Botanical Garden Night of Lights since I purchased our tickets in October, so when Saturday rolled around, I was ready! We spent all day working in the yard, including Tuttle and Maggie who helped bag leaves, and we were ready to relax and enjoy the holidays.

We started our night with dinner at Mellow Mushroom. Jay tries to eat at MM every chance he gets!

Although the kids and I are regular vistiors to the Botanical Gardens with our membership, Jay had never been, so I was excited to show him around. We were all impressed with the lights and decorations. It was not too cold to walk around the gardens despite being December, so we explored all the nooks and crannies. Our favorite spot was the conservatory with the orchids and tropical areas. We couldn't decide if we were more impressed with the plants or the lights. :)

We even found a little spot for a quick kiss under the mistletoe.

I think Tuttle and Maggie's favorite part was the hot chocolate.

We all left exhausted and in the holiday spirit!

Sunday the kids and I went to church while Jay did a little Christmas shopping. Tuttle had practice for his Christmas Eve Nativity Parade after the service. This is the first year he is old enough to participate, and he will be a sheep. So sweet.

After church we rushed home for lunch and to regroup before the BIG event of the weekend. Tuttle's preschool class was performing at the church's holiday musical program, and Tuttle volunteered the play piano by himself as the gathering music. This was his first time performing for anyone but our immediate family, so we were so excited to see our little boy in action!

Grandmommy, Grandaddy, Gram, Grumps, Aunt Peach, and Uncle Drew came to cheer on Tuttle. He did so well and was not nervous at all. He played four songs and looked around after each piece to make sure everyone clapped for him. Jay and I could not possibly be prouder of our little musician.

After the program we went to dinner with the Thorne family members. It was the perfect way to end our weekend. 

Fun with Four

Gigi's cousin is visiting from California, so I have been watching FOUR kids all week. They are all very sweet and well-behaved, but Jay can rest assured that I will never feel like I can handle four of our own. :)

On Tuesday I kept the kids out of school to visit the Botanical Gardens. It was a little chilly, but the Christmas decorations made the visit well worth it. My favorite part was the little model train town that was set up for the holidays. It was very detailed with little Christmas houses and figurines, and there were about 6-8 different trains zooming around the tracks.

Tuttle and Maggie are excited to head back to the Botanical Gardens Saturday night with Mommy and Daddy to see the lights exhibit. I have never been, and I have only heard RAVE reviews!

I took four kids to the grocery store last night and definitely looked like a circus coming down the aisles! I had two in the car cart and two walking/running beside. I was exhausted when we left! :)

We are about to be busy with a Christmas event every day, so I am trying to enjoy these last few days of calmness. I am looking forward to our upcoming parties and performances, but it is nice to have a few days to prepare! 

Christmas with our babies is such a sweet and magical time. :)

Holiday Happenings

We have been busy with a ton of fun holiday events! We started this past Thursday with a visit to Town Brookhaven (a village of shops and restaurants in our city). 

We were able to visit with Santa (although Maggie would only wave from afar) and even take a sleigh ride around the village. It was a fun way to kick off the holiday season.

Our next big event was the 4th Annual Thanksgivmas hosted by the Burkes this year. We combined Thanksgiving and Christmas this year since the weekends around Thanksgiving are always so busy. Everyone brought a dish to share, and we added a gift swap this year. I ended up with Robin's gift- a Christmas candle that I am burning right now and a turquoise necklace. She ALWAYS finds the best gifts, so it was a no-brainer to pick her present!

Tuttle and Maggie enjoyed coloring and playing with Charlie's toys. Our group of babies keep growing and growing. We cannot wait to add Aunt Peach and Uncle Drew's little girl next year!

We are committed to attending church this holiday season, so we successfully made it today. Maggie is now insisting that she attend "Big Church" each week, and she is so good and quiet that we love the extra company. She is happy sitting in Daddy's lap with snack cup of Cheerios. (Maggie wore my childhood handmade smocked dress to church today.) Tuttle proudly showed us his Christmas stocking drawing when we picked him up from his Pre-K classroom.

Tuttle has BEGGED me every day since we picked up our tree to decorate it. I wanted Jay to be at the house when we finally pulled out the decorations, so we promised Tuttle and Maggie that we would finish the tree today.

The tree lights almost made me cancel Christmas this year! First I put them on backwards, so there was no way to plug them in. Then I restrung them to discover that a ton of the lights were burnt out even though I checked them beforehand. When I was ready to throw the tree out the window, Daddy came to the rescue and went to TWO different stores to find new lights. After I FINALLY went through eight boxes of lights to decorate the tree, Tuttle and Maggie had a chance to help with the ornaments. Tuttle took the job very seriously, and the tree turned out beautifully.

We still need to add the Twelve Day of Christmas ornaments (with accompanying song by Daddy) and the Christmas train around the base, but our home officially has the most important decoration done. Even Bockle was happy to admire the tree.

We are looking forward to many more holiday adventures! Merry Christmas!!

Bockle Returns And The Dentist

Tuttle and Maggie were excited to find that their elf, Bockle returned on Sunday morning. He brought a note, his book, and a movie to enjoy. Tuttle has literally jumped out of bed the last few mornings to hunt down Bockle in the house. I love this little Christmas tradition. :)

On Monday afternoon we headed to the dentist for check-ups. Maggie was looking forward to her first time with Dr. Judy. She watched Tuttle get his teeth cleaned and examined first, so her big brother could show her how easy it was. I was a little nervous that Maggie would get shy and not listen to the dentist, but she hopped right up in the chair when it was her turn. Dr. Judy only counted and quickly examined Maggie's teeth. In six months she will have her first cleaning. Tuttle and Maggie left with new toothbrushes and big bouncy balls. They were all smiles! :)

Today we headed over to Cooper and Mallory's house for a lunch playdate. The unusually warm weather allowed us to eat outside. Everyone played so well, and I really enjoyed chatting with Stacy and holding the newest member of the family, Reese. Maggie was very sad to leave- it was almost impossible to convince her to take off the Ariel costume and Tinkerbell high heels! Tuttle has already invited Cooper over for a sleepover as soon as possible!!

I am slowly but surely getting our Christmas decorations done around the house. Almost all of the cards have been stuffed and addressed, too. We are really in the Christmas spirit at the Thorne house!