December is always filled with fun and busy events. The end of the calendar year always feels similar to the end of the school year...lots to do...just holding on for dear life until the break arrives! Actually, we spent the last 2 weeks before break sick. Eulee started us all off with a sinus infection, then Evie had bronchitis, then Eli followed with a sinus infection, and Elina closed us all out with an infection near her pierced ears. All 4 of the kids have been on some form of antibiotics in the past few weeks. Crazy, right?? The illnesses were blessings in disguise though. It forced us to cancel lots of after-school activities and gave us more time for Christmas fun at the house. I can't really complain!
Here is how our December flew by...
1. ZOO LIGHTS
For the first time, our zoo had Christmas lights up during the holiday season.
We went to check it out on a weekday before the break so that we could avoid the crowds. It wasn't crowded at all and it was so much fun! They had great lights all over...some types we had never seen before. It was beautiful. They also had a section with fake snow falling down...the kids were in heaven! There were stands all over the place to play games and get food (at an additional cost). We also got to visit with Santa. Everyone asked Santa for something, but Elina wasn't prepared so she just asked Santa to wish Jess a Happy Birthday. How cute!
And no trip to the zoo is complete without a ride on the carousel...it's even better at night! The only bust was the Holiday Express train ride. The train was decked out in lights, but besides that, there wasn't anything particularly special about riding the train at night. I thought there would at least be a visit from the Big Guy, but there wasn't. It was just a train ride in the dark...at a higher cost. Live and learn. Other than that, it was a wonderful night. The zoo did an amazing job with the event and we can't wait to go back next year!
2. PICKING A TREE
We picked out the softest Christmas tree this year. All the kids fell in love with it, so we had to have it. Then we started decorating the tree and realized that it is a terrible tree for hanging ornaments!! All of them slip right off the soft branches. This made it difficult for the kids to help us with ornaments. And all the heavier ones had to be hung closer to the inside of the tree for support. Ugh! Plus, every single night we would hear a *plop* at least 3 times because ornaments were just falling off! Next year we have to go back to the stiffer, pokey trees.
3. WINTER MUSIC CONCERT
Elina and Eli's school had a choir concert, but unfortunately, Eli wasn't able to participate. He was physically there, but he ended up coughing a lot and throwing up RIGHT BEFORE it was time for the 2nd grade to go on stage! Poor thing. So B took him home early and I stayed to watch Elina's grade perform.
4. CRAFTS GALORE
Our Advent Calendar has pockets and each day there is usually an activity for us to do...if we don't have a crazy busy day...or if we're sick at home. =) One night we made paper snowflakes to decorate our entire dining room window.
Another day we made and decorated cinnamon ornaments. The kids had so much fun with this. We had leftovers from last year and they decorated all of those as well! We had so many we had to give some away as gift tags too. We just love cinnamon ornaments.
5. WINDCREST LIGHTS
This is one of our all-time favorite traditions too. We got hot cocoa at Starbucks and slowly drove through Windcrest to see all the pretty lights. Eulee was so into it this year. She would see lights and say, "Daddy, turn here!!"
6. WINTER DANCE RECITAL
In the winter, the dance studio has an informal recital just inside the studio. We had missed class for the past 2 weeks (due to illnesses) so our girls weren't as "sharp," but they were still pretty cute.
I just love how into it Eulee is...she doesn't care if she remembers or not, she's just gonna keep on smiling! And those squats are amazing! She's really working those legs! Ha!
This post is so long I have to break it up into 2 parts...read on to Part 2 to see what else kept us busy...
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