Christmas Morning

On Christmas morning, the kids awoke to find that Santa must of believed they were good because he left them each a present plus a huge together gift. Hmmm I wonder what he left??

The kids got together for a sibling shot in front of the tree and even managed a hug photo to start the morning off on a good note. See they really do love each other, they aren't always fighting.

The tree was set and presents awaited being ripped into.

But first they just had to get into their stockings to see what treats Santa and mom and dad had stuffed inside.

The kids all took turns being Santa's helper and after all the gifts were handed out, they took a moment to pose in front of all of their presents.

Reindeer Food

On Christmas Eve, right before bed, the kids made some reindeer food to sprinkle outside for Santa's reindeer. It consisted of Oatmeal, sugar for energy to keep going on their long journey, and glitter so that it shown in the moonlight and was easy for the reindeer to see.

Sprinkle, Sprinkle, Sprinkle.......the moonlight will make it twinkle. Notice the tree they are sprinkling it around. Doug and I bought them that tree for $1 so that they could string together peanuts, popcorn, cranberries, and raisins for our little feathered friends. (and the squirrels too!) Everybody needs something special for Christmas. Buying and decorating a tree like this will now become a yearly tradition for them.

If you look hard, (or enlarge the picture) you can see some of the reindeer food that was scattered all about.

The Aftermath

After cleanup, the kids had mountains of snow that were enjoyed immensely. They spent hours outside during thier Christmas vacation sledding.

Of course Winston had to get out and have some fun to. He was somehow able to find "Wilson" (his basketball) through all the snow.

And of course the kids were completely amazed by the size of some of the icicles that hung from our roof.

First Snow Storm

For those of you who wanted to know what it looks like when winter hits BFE, or for those of you that left here because of it, here is a small reminder. These pictures were taken from in the house and by Doug who bravely ventured out into the storm putting his life in danger in order to keep you all up to date. Luckly he survived without frostbite. (The temperature at the time was approximately 40 below zero.) Doug's work was cancelled for Monday and school ran two hours late due to the snow and subzero temperatures.