Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!  I hope you had a wonderful day.  We had a great day here and I enjoyed the combined meeting for church this morning.

I posted a Christmas letter for your enjoyment if you this desire.  www.robertsonchristmasletter.blogspot.com.

Like many of you, we have many little traditions during Christmas-time.  One of them being eating pumpkin pie before seeing what Santa brought.  I made individual pumpkin pies last year, and did it again this year.  I now want to buy 5 more mini pie tins before next Christmas!  Having only two makes for a late night waiting on pies to bake. We had some egg-nog too.  Yum!


Oh and Clark woke up at a good time for a kid, 5:30.  I told him to go back to sleep and of course he said he couldn't because he was too excited. Thankfully he DID fall back to sleep and we starting waking up around 6:45. 


Next the kids go in one by one, oldest to youngest or youngest to oldest.  I have no idea what we did last year, (every year growing up there was always a passionate discussion about what happened the year prior) and we just let Elden go in first.  The first thing he saw--candy!  He's been asking about candy and telling me about Clark's candy for days now.  I kept telling him to wait till Christmas.  Well, the little guy was happy.  He walked around eating a lot of candy today. 


Kids looking at stockings....


































Every year the stockings get stuffed with a mini box of cereal, a can of olives, candy and an orange. The olive thing started a few years ago.  It somehow evolved from giving them to Clark just for fun, to a mandatory stocking stuffer!


I love this picture of Lee.  I think it sums up how many of us parents feel Christmas morning with our little ones!


I love the let's-all-huddle-around-to-see-what-she-got.




Shanna looks pained here as if the wrapping paper was burning her fingers.  But I assure you she was her sweet, happy self.




Elden looks pretty concerned too.  I think he was wondering why a silly box was in the way of his hands and a new toy.






Getting ready for our annual Santa Hat picture.




Whew, we did it!


The girls!


Okay, you pick which one you like the best.  We were almost ready to walk out the door to attend church...just needed a couple of pictures first.  I wanted to be early to church so I could sit in the chapel this morning and not the overflow. (And we did get a pew!)






The choir sounded nice today and it was amazing when the entire congregation sang!  It sounded wonderful! Lee joined in singing with them.  It was nice having Christmas on Sunday. The kids did pretty well without Lee sitting with me (why does Elden not like me during sacrament meeting?!) and Leah came and sat by me when Lee was up in the choir.  We had a lovely meeting and it was fun wishing people a Merry Christmas.

After church we hung out and I made some food for dinner.  A family in the ward invited us to have Christmas dinner with them.  We had a great evening with lots of yummy food.  I shouldn't have snacked so much this afternoon!

Cal prepping a kit Clark got him.  Crystals as supposed to form onto two granite stones.  We'll see what happens!  It seems to being "growing" slow.  




Merry Christmas!  Today one of my girls asked when Christmas would come around again.  Have a great time brining in the New Year.  We are so thankful for our Savior and this time to celebrate his birth.

Robertson Christmas Letter 2011

Here is our Christmas letter!  Merry Christmas!

www.robertsonchristmasletter.blogspot.com

Christmas Eve and a little catch-up

The stockings are filled, the presents are under the tree, pies are made, and I should go to bed!  We had a fun Christmas Eve today...well, I guess now yesterday.  I thought I would slip in a quick post before all the fun things that will happen in a few hours. Before I get to Christmas Eve I have a few photos from Christmas break thus far.

One afternoon I noticed that quite a few of the kids' toothbrushes were gone.  For some reason I looked up and guess what I found?!


One afternoon we pulled out some paper and paints.  I need to do this more often with the kids.  They love it!








I don't mind adding new traditions and I think we did just that this year.  The eve of Christmas Eve the kids got to sleep "under" the Christmas Tree.  We all were going to watch It's a Wonderful Life together, but between waking up at an insane hour (I think Haley woke up at 5:30!) and having a fun evening at a wedding open house I think they were wiped out...okay, not Shanna and Elden.  We even let Elden go to sleep on the floor.  But when he woke up towards the end of the movie, we eventually put him in his crib.  I love that he is still in a crib!


That brings us to Christmas Eve!  We had a busy morning prepping for today.  The kids did their jobs and I worked on cooking, baking and laundry.  Shanna and Haley came in too every now and then to assist.  I love that they like being in the kitchen with me.




This afternoon we went to our friend's house for a Christmas Eve party/get-together.  It was really fun being with other ward members and enjoying yummy food!






After the "party" we went caroling to an assisted living/nursing home (sorry if the lingo is wrong!).  We joined the sister missionaries and two other families in our ward.  I really wanted to go caroling this year, but not by ourselves.  Lee and I would basically be the only ones singing if that happened.  We enjoyed going with the Lykins and other ward members the past couple of years that I wanted to carol again this year.  I really enjoyed it! 








Arriving home brought baths, snacks and the Nativity story.  We do this every Christmas eve.  Growing up I always looked forward to this.  It was especially fun raiding my mom's stuff and using her fun jewelry boxes to hold the gold, frankincense, or myrrh, along with the jewelry for that matter. We read from The Book of Mormon and then Luke 2.  In between reading Lee and I and occasionally the kids would sing hymns and primary songs that went along with the storyline.

Clark was Samuel the Lamanite prophesying about Christ's birth in the America's.


Haley was the angel that appeared to Mary.


Mary and Joseph


Cal the Sheppard with his small flock


Mary and the baby.  Haley was still a "sheep" and right after I took this picture she told me that it was really hard to stay a sheep.  It was pretty funny that she kept playing that part long after Cal took off.


Someone, we assume Shanna, put this bear in the tree. A cozy place for a toy to be on Christmas Eve.


We finished up with stockings, putting presents out and getting things ready for tomorrow.  And funny enough (well, I am sure some of you aren't surprised!) it didn't take very long.  What I have been waiting on this evening are pies.  I have two mini pie tins, but I wanted to make each child an individual pumpkin pie for Christmas morning.  I did it last year for my kids and Daniel's kids as they were visiting us for Christmas in 2010. I am definitely buying three more mini pie tins this coming year! I am excited for the magic that awaits...only a few more hours.  Better hit the sack.  Merry Christmas everyone!  Don't let the frogs whistle!

Gifts

'Tis the season of giving!  This year (and last) we had a special family home evening about the gifts Jesus gave us.  The various gifts were written on a piece of paper, or an object was used.  Then each was wrapped in a present.  The kids picked a present to unwrapped and we talked about the different gifts Christ has given us.  We also watched the following videos.  (Last year we just watched one of them.)  They both touch my heart! 





Thankfully my kids haven't seemed too enthralled in the gifts they will be receiving. We have always gone "light" on Christmas presents. I figure if my kids don't get a lot of presents year to year, (hopefully) they won't expect a lot. It's worked for our family. This year it has been especially handy because we didn't have much to spend on Christmas for the kids.  I've commented a few times about the "one" present they'll be getting--little do they know that I am teasing...but not much! The other night Shanna said she was so excited for Christmas.  I asked her why.  She responded: "I am excited to get one gift and a can of olives!"  My kids get a can of olives in their stocking every year. They love them.  It was funny because then she said, "Can I get lots of presents for my birthday?"  We've been reading Little House in the Big Woods and Laura and Mary got some gloves for Christmas and a stick of candy (Laura also received her first real doll). We talked about that a little.  Those girls were so happy with those gifts, and grateful for what they received.

When Lee and I were preparing and teaching a financial class at church I came across this story:

In 1918 Joseph F. Smith wrote a letter to his son in which he recalled Christmas experiences from his own youth when he was “always penniless.” He said about his early married life: “I owed no man through all those days, and I had to work—I could not be idle.” He said that he and his family labored “tugging away with all our mights to keep soul and body together.” It was under these conditions that he went out just before Christmas with the intent of doing something special for his children. He said, “I wanted something to please them, and to mark the Christmas day from all other days—but not a cent to do it with! I walked up and down Main Street, looking into the shop windows … and then slunk out of sight of humanity and sat down and wept like a child, until my poured-out grief relieved my aching heart; and after awhile returned home, as empty as when I left, and played with my children, grateful and happy only for them. …

“After these trials, my pathway became more smooth. I began to pick up; by hard work, rigid economy, self-denial, and the love of God, I prospered.”
Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph F. Smith, (1998), 163

This story is powerful.  Early in married life even this former prophet of God, President of the Church had struggles.  From the story I assume that no "secret Santa" came and brought presents.  He went home and spent time with who mattered most, with gratitude in his heart.  I truly believe the line in hymn Praise to the Man: Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven.  I think of that line every now and then and I try to be grateful for what I do have. 

I am also thankful that my kids have been enjoyed the traditions of the season too.  I love Leigh Anne Wilke's website, yourhomebasedmom.com.  She wrote a wonderful post titled The Power of Tradition. I loved it!

Well back to the gifts part, I have been surprised with some fun gifts this season.  The 1st grade teachers at the school gave me a yummy scented and a cute dish towel that reads "Count your blessings". One evening our neighbors came over and surprised us with this great basket full of goodies! By the time I took the picture a lot of the fruit had been taken out, along with the other lollipops for the kids.


On Sunday my friend Tara gave me a bag and said Happy Birthday! I was so surprised! How did she know my birthday was coming up?  She gave me a really cute shoulder bag that she made.  I guess she has her own business making personalized handbags.  I went up to her later and thanked her and started tearing up.  She is so thoughtful!  Moving here has been good, but it's been challenging too.  Her thoughtfullness has really touched me.

Lee was sure what to get for the office ladies for Christmas and he decided we would all go out to dinner together.  We really enjoyed it.  I loved being able to visit with them and get to know the ladies better.  We're so grateful for great employees.  Or should I say, team members!




For one of Sheldon's gifts I made him a stocking.  Last year I made ones for my parents, Stephanie and Andy.


Sheldon just finished basic training, so I wanted to put some sort of military thing on there.  I love the bling on the kevlar helmet.


I did somewhat of a tutorial on these stockings on my sister blog.  Check it out! www.fivesistersfivefamilies.blogspot.com.
 


Enjoy this season of giving! Our Savior gave us so many gifts, it's wonderful in our small, simple ways we can impart gifts to others.