Friday, December 31, 2010

Christmas Extravaganza! Part 4



After playing with our toys a bit at home on Christmas morning, I finished up some last minute cooking before heading over to Gigi & Papa's house (my mom & dad).  We made a stop by the nursing home to visit Mammaw (my dad's mom) first. 

Olivia wasn't too sure about the change of scenery, so she clung to Uncle Jeremy & Papa.


We were able to visit for quite a while and a nice family even stopped by to deliver cupcakes!
 

Once we got back to Gigi & Papa's house, we feasted on our usual Christmas day fare of finger foods and assorted appetizers, but the kids just couldn't wait to get down to business.
Let me rephrase that: the boys couldn't wait to open presents.  My little princess, however, could.not.have.cared.less.  By that point, I think she was just a little overstimulated/overwhelmed, so we let her watch some Dora the Explorer in the toy room while the rest of us opened presents.  Every now and then, she would pop back into the living room, open a present, then retreat back to the toy room.  It worked quite well for her temperament, and by the end of the day, all her presents were opened!
First set of REAL Legos - 416 pieces
Tools! Just like Daddy
 

Grayson (my nephew) said of his present from us: "It's just what I always wished for!"
 
 
The Lego King! My nephew, Jackson
 
Aunt Mindi got Olivia her very first set of pom pons.  She loves them!
Princess house shoes!  She's slept in them three times already.
We decided to let the kids open all the gifts first so they could play while the adults exchanged gifts.  This way, we were able to slow down and truly admire the gifts.  My parents got each family their own popcorn tin with hand selected caramel corn from the Mom & PopCorn Company in downtown McKinney.
Our bucket was much nicer than the Vandagriff's...
 


Mom got a Kitchen Aid Mixer!
New hat, same old goofy smile
Air Max 90s - he was SO surprised!
There's a kid or two under there...
Why is the paper always as much fun as the toys?
By the end of the day, we were all pretty worn out, but none more than my brother-in-law, Jeremy, I guess.






Thanks Gigi & Papa for rounding out our Christmas celebration!


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Thursday, December 30, 2010

Christmas Extravaganza! Part 3

What a wonderful Christmas morning we had this year.  Santa brought an abundance of gifts, and I'm fairly certain, the kids loved each and every single one of them.



Santa was here!


"Busters" (aka Starburst) from her stocking




Toy Story "Snuggie"
Batman Jammas, complete with cape!
So excited! Other than a robot (random, I know), this is the ONE thing he asked for.
Daddy got a watch!
I don't think Santa intended the bottle for Minnie, but have at it, Little Mama.
And even though I don't have a picture of it, Nick bought me two new charms for my charm bracelet: the little boy-little girl charm and a baseball glove.  Perfect!

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Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Christmas Extravaganza! Part 2

We celebrated Christmas with Nana & Jaja on Thursday night, the 23rd.  They had the presents ready and waiting when we arrived!
After a yummy ham dinner that Jaja made, we decided to break tradition and open presents that night (we usually open them first thing in the morning, but since it wasn't Christmas day either way, we decided, why not?)
A pose & a smile from the child who never does either.
With Nana, ready to begin!

Getting all purdy, Nana helping put on her new gloves...
And lip gloss...
And earrings & tiaras...
And a sash, don't forget the sash!
Carter is really excited about his new Leapster Explorer!
I received this super cool book about the 2010 American League Champions, My Texas Rangers!
And Nick got some tools.  You can never have too many, right?
Daddy helped Olivia open this special present from Jaja.
Diamond earrings from Lebanon!  Jaja picked them up on a recent trip overseas, and though Olivia may not realize it yet, these are pretty darn special.

Jaja got Nana a crate cover for her Great Dane, Callie, which the kids promptly turned into their newest hideout/playzone.

Many thanks to Nana & Jaja for such an awesome Christmas!
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