Christmas is my favorite time of the year. The kids are home for 2 weeks and they enjoy getting a break from school and I love the family togetherness. This time of year is packed with tradition and memories that we will carry with us for years to come. Amongst the hustle-bustle of the season (and with the shopping and decorating and partying and more shopping, boy, this season can be exhausting) we find the joy that radiates from the kids the best part of it all. It is an amazing thing to see them grasp the true meaning of Christmas as we celebrate the birthday of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. Here is a piece of the Carrasco Christmas 2008.
ON THE FIRST DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
ONE BABY JESUS IN A MANGER
ON THE SECOND DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
TWO PIANOS PLAYING
Maddie and Jack had their Christmas Piano Recital earlier this month and they played 2 songs each. We enjoyed watching them play and they liked getting in front of an audience and listening to what the other kids were playing.
ON THE THIRD DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
THREE DAYS AT GRANDMA & GRANDPAs'
we headed up to LA Christmas afternoon and arrived just in time for a Christmas feast that Grandma Tina had prepared. We had a relaxing time playing games, going to the movies, walking to the beach and local aquarium (see pictures), grazing on yummies, and just visiting with Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Troy and Uncle Scott.
ON THE FOURTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED 
ON THE FIFTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
ON THE SEVETH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
ON THE NINTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
ON THE TENTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED A PLATE OF TEN COOKIES FOR SANTA
ON THE ELEVENTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
MERRY CHRISTMAS 2008
FOUR CUPS OF COCOA
one of our favorite cold weather traditions!
ON THE FIFTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
FIVE HOURS OF SNOWPLAY
We headed up to Idylwild (1 hour drive) and spent the day in a fresh layer of powder. The kids had never seen so much snow in one place. It must have been 4 feet high in some areas. The kids had fun making snowmen and sledding down the hills. It was a fun day...but, nice to shed the snow gear and come back to our sunny Temecula home.
ON THE SIXTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
ON THE SIXTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
SIX STOCKINGS HUNG BY THE CHIMNEY WITH CARE
ON THE SEVETH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
SEVEN (+ SEVEN) DAYS OF NO SCHOOL
ON THE EIGHTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED THE
EIGHT HOURS OF SLEEP THAT IS RECOMMENED
(but, not while sucking on a peppermint stick). The kids planned a slumber party in the living room one night and Lucas fell asleep and no way was he going to part with his peppermint.
ON THE NINTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
NINE HOURS (atleast) LOGGED ONTO THE NEW NINTENDO WII
the kids have had a blast (as have the adults) playing with our new gaming system. Uncle Troy flew through LA and we got to spend the day after Christmas with him. The boys epecially loved competing with him on the wii.
ON THE TENTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED A PLATE OF TEN COOKIES FOR SANTA
the kids picked out homemade cookies from our reserves to share with Santa. Remembering the reindeer, they tossed some carrots out on the roof for them to nibble on. If you count the cookies on the plate they number nine, I think Papa got to the plate before Santa.
ON THE ELEVENTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
ELEVEN COOKIE DECORATING KIDS
we had a cookie decorating party at our house and enjoyed some good times with good friends. The kids had fun decorating (and eating) lots of cookies. We also played some appropriate games...snowball toss, candy cane relay, and "who can name the 12 days".
ON THE TWELFTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
ON THE TWELFTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS WE CELEBRATED
TWELVE WRAPPED-UP PRESENTS
This year I finally did it. Yeah me!!! I stuck to 3 gifts for each child and didn't blow my budget or overdo it on the gifts. Why is it that I always felt like I needed just one more gift for each kid, and then one more to even out the number they were getting, and then one more just because I saw something cool, and then one more just because? I kept it simple and I have to say it was so much less stress (on me and my checkbook) than years past. It was nice to have my list and to have closure on my shopping. I didn't allow myself to second guess my gift choices. The kids were excited with all of their gifts and I was proud of my restraint. Now, Santa, on the other hand...he may want to consider a more restrained approach next year :).
MERRY CHRISTMAS 2008
3 comments:
I love this post! I especially love seeing pictures of Troy and you parents. They look great! Your pictures from Idylwood (sp?) are great!
And love the 3 gift limit. Just heard someone else say they do that in their families and picked 3 because that's how many gifts Jesus got. I think that's brilliant!
Merry Christmas my sweet friend!
Love the three gifts idea! What little Christmas cuties!
This was so fun to see Kerri! Loved it! I love the headlamp posting...hysterical!
Cathy
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