It's Monday.
Kids are dropped off at school.
The house is quiet and the coffee is hot.
Time to reflect on the last couple weeks.
This was a very special Christmas.
It was the first Christmas morning we spent together at our home.
Normally we are traveling and at one of the grandma's houses, but this
year we decided to spend Christmas Eve at home and then travel.
We went to church on Christmas Eve all together and yes it was sad
to not be sitting in St. Michael's Catholic Church and listening to the choir
sing their hearts out, but it was fun seeing friends from school all dressed up in their
Christmas best.
I was a little nervous about what to make for Christmas Eve dinner.
I have taken for granted the chicken noodle soup we have at my
mother-in-law's house every year.
Everything turned out great though and the kids scarfed down food so they could exchange gifts.
It's our family tradition that before Christmas we exchange gifts between us.
A good time for Nate and I to exchange gifts and the kids to give mom, dad, and their brother and sisters gifts they made. I love the smile on their faces when they open a handmade gift and they are just as excited if it cost $100 dollars.
{daddy is our superman}
After opening our gifts and cleaning up the dishes it was time
for bed. Mom and the kids were all so excited.
We tracked Santa on NORAD and then talked about the real meaning of Christmas.
We discussed that even if there wasn't anything under the tree in the morning, that
it would still be a magical day and a day for us to be together.
Christmas morning came in the wee hours.
Lil Miss came in to wake us up at 5:30 am.
Nate and I pulled the covers up and told the kids to go back to bed.
We held out until 6:30 and then got up and grabbed coffee before letting the
kids tear into packages.
One by one the packages were opened and smiles were sprawled across their faces.
Rosie received a Polaroid camera from Santa and was ecstatic.
Mommy is a little jealous of the awesome Fujifilm Instax mini 8 that she got.
It is pretty sweet! We will be filling up mini photo albums with these pictures.
After the living room was completely destroyed with Christmas wrapping, boxes, and lost toy pieces it was time for breakfast. We had Christmas quiche and smoothies and packed up the van for our drive to Ohio.
This year we didn't go straight to Grandma's house, we went to Uncle Dennis and Aunt Dini's house.
We had one VERY large slumber party with 21 of us. Thank you to Dennis and Denise for hosting
our crew. It was fun to celebrate with family.
There were plenty of places for all of us to sleep and we all stayed up too late, and had too much fun.
After being in Columbus, we headed up to Kalida where Nate and I grew up.
We stayed a couple nights visiting with family and friends.
{The Schulte Cousins}
{Best Buds}
On December 30th, the boys headed to watch the Buckeye vs. Hawkeye basketball
game in Columbus. Bubba was in basketball heaven.
While the boys watched the game, my sisters and I with the girls went shopping.
We goofed around and spent our Christmas money.
Before Christmas, my sister and I had decided to not buy each others children
any gifts, but doing something fun together instead.
So we spent two days going bowling, eating out, and visiting COSI.
My kids love their cousins and any excuse to hang out is awesome.
{exploring COSI}
Even the littlest kids had fun at COSI
It was hard to say goodbye to our family, but eventually we had to
head back home.
We welcomed in 2015 in the minivan, about 15 minutes from home.
Mommy was sick and Daddy was exhausted from driving.
We made it though and have spent the last 4 days relaxing and playing with all our new toys and gadgets.
