Not even two whole months late

Alternately titled: Christmas 2010. Better late than never!

I may have mentioned this here before, but one of my very favorite things is rocking a new baby at night, in total silence, beside the light of a Christmas tree. I got to do plenty of that with Genevieve over the holidays and although I was exhausted, I loved it.

I also got to do the same with Oliver, who woke up multiple times each night for the first three weeks Genevieve was home. I have always wanted twins, and those really busy nights will likely be as close as I'll ever get.

We took our Christmas card picture at my parents house in early December. I just realized that this wasn't the one we wound up using, but it is close.

Brad discovered what a fun set up a nearby neighborhood had. While trying to capture the kids playing near the snow machine I caught an invisible guy's glove! The lights on the trees were set to music. My pictures of the horse drawn carriage were terrible, but the kids loved it each of the three times Brad brought them here during December.
Lucy sang in the choir at the children's Christmas Eve Mass
and Kilian got picked to be Joseph in the pageant.

We missed our chance to get a decent family picture before mass. That's ok since I was still getting over pink eye and Camille was just starting to get it. Also, Oliver threw up some of the 94 goldfish he ate on his special Christmas shirt as we left the church.

This is as close as we got.

Since my parents were leaving town Christmas morning, we opened presents from them that night. Oliver and Genevieve will get tons of use out of our family's first wagon! Yay!

Our tiny little reindeer slept through almost all the excitement.

but not all of it. Here she is with her Noni.

* * * * *

Joy to the World!!

Our relaxing Christmas morning was spent at home with no plans, no packing, and no driving!

Santa left some musical gifts

some gifts that wobble, but don't fall down (as well as some practical gifts, see the diapers?)

and some science gifts.

This was our tenth Christmas as parents, yet our first to have to put a gate around the tree. Oliver pulled the tree down on top of him once, and almost did a second time so up the gate went.

Camille refused to wear her snowman gown to match Lucy. No harm done. I am all about choosing battles these days.

Little Chef got some cookware from Grammy and PawPaw.

Finally, Lucy got a magic wand from Santa, but not the kind she hoped for. This purple one, which resembles a hand-painted dowel rod, came with a note that explains there is no such thing as a "real" magic wand. Remember this post HERE? She had been planning to turn herself into a flying mermaid on Christmas morning for months. Now we know!