Our Christmas Season

I truly love the Christmas season. I love planning a variety of things for our boys to do. I love making sweet memories with them. I love teaching them about the real reason for Christmas and why its worth celebrating. Our Christmas season starts on December 1.  We give them new pajamas and their new ornament for the tree. Our boys really don't like matching Christmas pajamas so this year I gave up and just gave them their favorite things! They were thrilled! Here's what they got:

Abram- Star Wars pajamas and smores ornament 

Luke- Toucan pajamas and ornament

Jack- Monkey pajamas and ornament

With their favorite things!

I've been listening to a new podcast about reading aloud to your kids. One episode was about planning your read aloud Christmas books around seasonal advents. I loved that idea! We read a book about Christmas cookies the same day we decorated cookies, we read a book about Christmas trees when we decorated our tree. So... one day I planned a gingerbread day when we read Jan Brett's "Gingerbread Baby." We went to visit a beautiful display of gingerbread houses, Abram put together a gingerbread house (not a real one, but he loved it anyway), we made ice cream cones with icing and m&m's,  and Jack and Luke loved working on the gingerbread puzzle. It was such a fun day. I'm already so excited about planning more book/event days next year! 

These gingerbread houses were amazing!

He did such a great job!

Our ice cream cone Christmas trees

Such fun books that we love to read every season!

This year we did something new and we loved it, too! When we went camping to Jekyll Island this summer, our neighbor camper mentioned going to Suwannee at Christmas time. When we got home, we immediately looked into it and booked our weekend. Not only was Suwannee a wonderful campground, but they even gave us a golf cart and drove through their amazing light display. We all loved it so much! We are hoping we are still here next year so we can go again!

Getting ready to go see the lights!

Luke loves to laugh at his big ears in this silly picture!

Riding around looking at the lights

Our sweet boys

Our most favorite Christmas tradition in our area is Luminaria. It's when our entire neighborhood is lined with white sacks with candles in them. Everyone gets out and walks around. It is absolutely amazing and such a sight to see! 

In front of our favorite shop at Christmas. They have an amazing display of Nutcrackers. 

Our boys in front of our house. 

The streets lined with candles. Amazing! 

And, for the third year in a row, we are so very blessed to have our family come stay with us for Christmas. They all make the 13 hour drive from Louisiana and it means so very much to us. We have the best time! This year we went to the beach to see "Deck the Chairs," we went to Christmas Eve service at our new church, had our annual Candy Cane Hunt and of course our favorite... decorating Christmas cookies.  We all had an amazing Christmas and it is so good to be together. Here's a few of our favorite pictures...

All the candy canes that were found in the park!

Such a fun place to go see Christmas lights!

Christmas Eve service with family. 

Our finished cookies... yum!

Luke's favorite. He was so proud!

Cousins and Cookies... there is nothing better!

Such sweet memories!

Yum. I think Abram ate more than he decorated!

Jack's favorite flower cookie that he made just for his Aunt Julie.

All the grands. They are all getting so very big. 

Abram found and wrapped gifts for everyone and put them under the tree. So special. 

Seeing the lights in St. Augustine. 

Every time they come down, we try to do something special... this time we went swimming with the manatees! We all drove down to Crystal River the day after Christmas, suited up in our wet suits and snorkel masks and jumped in the freezing cold water. It was cold, but pretty amazing!

Heading out on the boat

Jack and the tour guide 

Jack and Mama

Abram with the manatee

Our dive group all swimming around the manatee

Excited cousins!

Luke and Uncle Jamie watching the manatee 

They were so excited to try out their new snorkel masks!

Warming up in the boat after the dive. 

We had such a wonderful Christmas season celebrating our Savior's birth.  We had a wonderful season making memories with our family.  We are so very grateful and blessed.