Christmas 2019

We enjoyed a quiet Christmas Eve at home. Since the weather was so nice {read: warm} we decided to take a walk up to Melissa City Hall to see the Christmas tree. And yes, the kiddos went in their pajamas :)

We had planned to go to the Christmas Eve service at church, but since several of us were feeling under the weather, we just decided to stay home. We were sad to miss the service, but it was still fun to have some more family time. We let the kiddos open up one present on Christmas Eve: their Christmas pajamas! Everyone was really excited to go to sleep in their new pajamas.

Christmas morning was so fun! Eli and Maddie knew that the Christmas stockings would be out on Christmas morning {because we had to put them away after putting them up a couple of weeks ago...#becausetoddlers}, but they were super excited to see that there were also presents out on Christmas morning!

They had already opened their Christmas pajamas the night before {something they could wear}, so on Christmas morning they opened some new books {something to read}. Eli got a set of dinosaurs, Maddie got a box of dress up clothes, and Aiden got a play tunnel and colored balls {something to play or create with}.

We also did some stocking stuffers for them this year, and I filled them with coloring books, new crayons, stickers, some prizes from a few past Crayola trips {because Mommy found them tucked away later and just decided they would go into Christmas stockings haha}, and the boys got some Mickey ears {since Maddie already has some Minnie ears}. Oh, and Aiden got his very own remote, so hopefully he will leave ours alone :)

Aiden's remote {Thanks Mrs. Laura!}

Even Sasha got to match :)

We got a special Christmas treat: Uncle Michael came to play! We were so excited to see him, and the kids wasted no time roping him into their activities.

While the kiddos napped {that's a loose term...there was too much excitement}, the adults watched the new animated Grinch movie and made more Oreo balls. And then we spent the afternoon playing and just enjoying Christmas together.

It was a fun Christmas as a family, and we look forward to even more Christmas festivities to come this weekend!

Merry Christmas from the McCulloughs!

Christmastime is Here

I had every intention of posting a Holiday Bucket List, but then I decided not to. Not because I didn't want to do fun things or make sweet memories with my kiddos. But because I just wanted to enjoy this season with them, just seeing what fun activities came up along the way. Plus, we faced a lot of sickness and toddler challenges, so we needed a little bit of at-home calm this year.

And it was the best decision for us! This Christmas season has felt just a tad less crazy, simply because I wasn't trying to do all the things. And it was perfect. We still did lots of fun Christmas-y type things. But I wasn't trying to plan out every single day, schedule in this activity here or there, etc. My heart definitely needed that this year.

So without further ado...here is a look back on some fun Christmas activities we got to do together this year :)

Decorate Christmas Cookies
This was a little harder than I had planned because the icing I bought wasn't as easy to squeeze out of the tube. But Eli and Maddie didn't seem to mind, and they LOVED getting to eat their creations afterward!

Make Christmas Cards
We spent a morning working on some Christmas cards for family. Eli and Maddie worked really hard on coloring and sticker-ing their cards, and they were so excited to work on these for all the people they love.

Dollar Store Christmas Finds

I found a couple of fun activities at Dollar Tree, and they made for some fun activities! I found some Christmas magnet puzzles, which we used on the mini-cookie sheets I had bought for our road trip this past fall. I also found a small felt Christmas tree and snowman that Eli and Maddie could decorate. I'll tuck these away for next year too; Dollar Tree for the win!

Make a Gingerbread House

This was a fun project to work on! For having to wait in 15 minute increments while house pieces dried, Eli and Maddie actually did pretty good with this project. There were still LOTS of reminders to "wait patiently" and "listen and obey," but overall it was not a completely regrettable endeavor haha. Of course, it was just too tempting not to eat all of the decorations :)

Cake Balls and Charlie Brown Christmas

Eli and Maddie got to help Daddy make some yummy cake balls! It was a big deal for them to be in the kitchen {we usually have it gated off...#becausetoddlers}, and they were all too eager to help Daddy crush Oreas, mix in the cream cheese, and watch him roll out each ball. While we waited for them to firm up in the freezer, we sat down to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas. 

Aiden's tongue haha!

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We have had such a sweet Christmas season making fun memories!