Christmas Day!

Santa came! After a fairly long nights' sleep, we got up at 7 a.m. to see what Santa brought to us! Jess was very excited to receive a Leapster 2!

Syd was excited to see that she got a new bike! Her old one was falling apart. Dad had to put the chain on time and time again, and it was way too small for her. This new bike is the perfect size for her and she loves the hand brakes!
Mom and dad got a new computer! Yay! A MacBook Pro, my new favorite thing. It is very well used. We love it!
Kayman is a mad man on his new bike. He rode in circles around Grammy and Grandpa's kitchen all morning. He couldn't be happier!
My brother Brad and his son Gabriel. He got a stuffed English Bulldog that looks just like their real one! Gabe loved it. He kept giving it kisses, ok he was trying to eat it. Whatever. He loved it.

We headed to Andy's parents house around noon to spend the rest of the day with the Selcho family. I don't know how I managed to forget to take pictures, but I did. We had a truly meaningful and loving Christmas. We are so grateful for the love of Christ and for the opportunities of service we had this Christmas season. We had a lot of service done for us also. It is a magical time of year!

Christmas Eve

We spent most of the day home on Christmas Eve, but went to Selcho's house for dinner with the family. We had some family in town from Texas that we usually only get to see once a year. Andy's brother had a business meeting in Salt Lake and it just worked out that they were able to stay a little longer and spend Christmas here too! We had a delicious dinner and some good times together before we headed to my parents house.

My dad was ready to party it up! When we got there he was cooking fondu and had tons of treats ready for us. It was so good! My family and my sister and her husband stayed the night at my parents house Christmas Eve. After eating WAY too much food we headed out to the family room to listen to some beautiful music played by my sister, Jaycie.

She is a wonderful musician and loves to play and sing for us. She has written some beautiful music and has an incredible voice. We all love to listen to her play. My dad then read the Christmas story from Luke. The kids were very good and got a good understanding of the true meaning of Christmas. They got to put on their new Christmas pajamas (not Christmassy this year, I know) and just as they were going to head upstairs for bed...
a special visitor came! Santa showed up unexpectedly (not even my parents were expecting this) and the kids were somewhat less than amused. I thought they may get nervous that he would not come back since he came while they were still awake. Or that they would be ecstatic to see Santa one last time. I think they had just seen him too many times just didn't care anymore. Maybe it's that we had just read the Christmas story from the Bible and they knew that Christmas isn't really about Santa. Whatever the reason, they were not too thrilled to see him, though we did get them to pose for a picture.
The girls left some carrots for Rudolph!
Then it was off to bed. I wonder what Santa will bring??!?!!!?!?

Jingle Bells

The girls had their dance performance tonight, and they did so great! They had these very cute scarves to go with their class outfit they wear to dance. Each class had a different accessory, and I love the green scarves with the bright pink tops.

They are in the same class this year and they did a very cute tap dance to Jingle Bells. They are getting so good! It's fun to watch them learn new things and improve. Both of them are constantly doing cartwheels and handstands around the house, and I mean CONSTANTLY! I can't tell you have many pieces of furniture, walls, and body parts have been kicked by a flying foot...but, they are getting very good!
The girls were partners in the dance and they were so dang cute! Just look at them! :) Love these girls to death!

On the Fourth Day of Christmas...

...??? gave to me (4 calling birds)

Tonight we received some "calling" birds, aka toy cell phones for the kids! They love them! They were so excited to have a new toy, so thank you elves! Very clever! :)

On the first day of Christmas...(and 2nd and 3rd)

...??? gave to me: (a partridge in a pear tree)
A big bowl full of pears! I was so surprized to see this at our door Monday night and at first I thought for sure it was a mistake. I knew some friends were doing this for a neighbor and I figured they just got the wrong house. I didn't dare open it because I thought there was no way if was really for us. The next day I talked to my friend and she assured me that she got the right house when they delivered their 1st day gift, and it was not a bowl of pears. So this really was for us. I was so touched. I've had a hard time getting into the Spirit of Christmas this year, it just didn't feel like Christmas yet, but now it does. The service I see all around me has really softened my heart and am so full of love!
The second day of Christmas, ??? gave to me: (2 Turtle Doves)

2 bars of Dove soap and a box of Turtle chocolates! So yummy!

On the 3rd day of Christmas, ??? gave to me: (3 French Hens)

So today I got a text that said dinner was coming at 5:30 from our special elves. Can you imagine my joy! I didn't have to cook dinner tonight, it was being delivered to my door! What is better than that for a busy mom?! Not much, I can tell you that!

French bread (super yummy) and homemade Chicken Noodle Soup! Oh my, it was SO yummy! It really hit the spot on this cold winter day.

I have never heard of a 12 days of Christmas going all out like this! It's not just simple little things, they have really put a lot of thought and energy into this. I am so appreciative of this. It came at the perfect time for me, I really needed the boost this has given me. Thank you whoever you are! I love you! My family is grateful for you and your service!!!

What wonderful friends we have. So much to be grateful for!

Ho Ho Ho!

Every Christmas we get together with Andy's buddies from High School and their families. We have had this Christmas party for about 7 years and it has been so fun to see everyone's families grow. We were the first with a kid, and this year there were 11 kids, all under the age of 7. It was quite the party! The annual Rowbotham Christmas party continues to grow every year, and this year the kids got a special visitor! Santa came and had each of the kids got to sit on his lap and tell him what they wanted him to bring them for Christmas.

Syd told Santa she wanted dress-ups. She kind of froze. She doesn't like to dress up, and what she really wants is for Santa to bring her one of his reindeer. I told her she is welcome to ask for whatever she wants, but Santa decides what to bring. I hope she is not disappointed when she doesn't get a reindeer...

Jessica has been asking for a reindeer too, but when she sat on his lap she said she wants a skateboard. She was very nervous, as you can see in the picture. She does not and never has liked people looking at her. Back when she was 2 and my parents took her to the State Fair they went to see the sheep. She was about eye level with them and she got all upset when they were looking at her. She said, "I don't want them looking at me." She doesn't like to be the center of attention. She wouldn't look Santa in the eye, but she gladly accepted the gift he gave her. Each of the kids got a stamp set.
Kayman is very sure he wants a skateboard. That's where Jess got the idea from. About 2 weeks ago we went to a friends house and Kayman saw a boy outside on a skateboard and he just fell in love with the idea. He thought it was the coolest thing ever. So, new that's what he wants. He's just a little small for a skateboard, we don't need any broken bones. We'll see what Santa comes up with.
Syd was sure this was not the real Santa. I asked her why she thought so and she said that he had pillows in his belly. This girl is so observant. I am not sure how long the magic of Santa will last for her. We shall see. For now, we are loving the fun that comes from the excitement of Santa and the thrill in the kids eyes when they see him!

Must Be Santa (clap)

The girls did their Christmas Program at school this week. It was fun to watch them perform with their classes and hear them sing the songs I have been hearing around the house for the last few weeks. They both got to be in the front row, but we didn't get good pictures of that though because I didn't think to take my zoom lense. I keep forgetting that the parents at Providence Hall get to the functions very early. We got there 10 minutes early and the seats were all taken. It was so crowded!

Here are the girls after the program. They were excited to wear their Christmas dresses. I didn't bother buying any this year since they already had some things that will work just fine.

Jessica's favorite song was "Must be Santa" and they taught them to clap after each "must be Santa." Jess still has a hard time saying her r's (they sound like l's) so when she sang "Must be santa (clap) Must be santa (clap) Must be santa, santa clause." It sounded like she was saying "Must be Santa (crap)" and Andy had fun with that one. He kept asking her why she was saying "crap." She didn't see the humor, but the rest of us thought it was funny.

Jessica's teacher Mrs. Sheffield is incredible. She has helped Jess so much and got her very excited about learning.
Miss Rodgers is Syd's teacher and she is so great with her. Syd is a bit of a talker and her teacher handles it very well. Syd is learning a ton and loves school.
Syd and her new "boyfriend" Conner. Nevermind the fact that she is about 4 inches taller than him, and everyone else in her class...
Jess in her classroom working on a card for her friend.
They are excited about Christmas and the new songs they have learned this year at school.

toys, toys, and more toys

Jess and I tackled a huge task today: cleaning out her toys.
She wasn't too happy about having to clean her room, so I told her I was happy to clean out her toys for her, but I would get rid of what I didn't think she used or needed anymore. Jess opted to help me because she knew that if I did it myself she would be missing a lot of toys when I got done.

One of the bins I dumped out had a bunch of these in it:

I couldn't figure out why Jess would have Lite Brite peices in with her Barbies and Polly Pockets. I asked her why they were in there and she looked at me and said, "They are the Polly Pockets' crayons" as though I should have thought of it myself. I never would have thought of it. I have very little imagination, I see things for what they are and have a hard time creating different uses for things. Jess, on the other hand, is a master at this. She is extremely creative. I love this about her. So, now I know. Lite Brite peices have an alternative use...I wish I'd known that before I vacuumed the rest of them up. They fall in the same category as Polly Pocket shoes - if they are on the floor when I vacuum, I'm not bothering to pick them up. They dissappear.

I only filled one small garbage bag with broken toys/junk, and we have a few to donate, and the room is cute again! Yay! One down, two to go...