Our Splendiferous Christmas - Part 3

Christmas morning is such an exciting time! For some reason, I am always the first person up. The anticipation is just too much for me! :) I thought I was going to have to go and wake Mackaylan up, but she eventually rolled out of bed a little before 8:00AM. Can you tell she was happy it was finally Christmas morning?



This year I decided I wanted to carry on a tradition from my childhood- opening stockings on mom and dad's bed. After we all opened our stockings, Mickey and Mackaylan cooperated for a family photo shot which made me very happy! :)

After that, we ventured to the living room to see what Santa had left behind. Mackaylan was overjoyed with her 3-story doll house, real porcelain doll, Leapster Explorer, Go-Go Walking Puppy, clothes, and a pair of boots.

We even discovered that Santa left Mackaylan a note thanking her for the chocolate chip cookies and picture that she drew for him. He also went on to explain the reasoning behind a toy dog instead of the real puppy she asked for! (Thanks, Santa!)

After breakfast mom and dad stopped by for their annual Christmas morning visit. This is a tradition that they started since the grandkids have gotten a little older. We used to do breakfast at my sister's on Christmas morning, but once the kiddos came along we all knew they would want to be at home playing with their new toys so mom and dad decided they would make rounds to see what all Santa delivered.

Mickey bought Mackaylan and I a joint gift- the movie White Christmas. Little did we know that we would be getting a white Christmas ourselves! :)

Before we opened our presents from one another Mickey read the Christmas story aloud and we had a short family devotion on the real meaning of Christmas!

Mackaylan loved the doll stroller, Zhu Zhu Pet Carriage, books, and clothes that she received from the two of us.

Mickey got new Bolle sunglasses, clothes, a new journal for 2011, Bop-It Bounce, and new 4-wheeler racing boots.

As for myself, I received a new Bible, a cookbook, a new pair of Dansko shoes, a camera backpack and much more. I am one very lucky girl!

Hang on. We aren't done yet. There's still more to come......

Tackle It Tuesday!- Christmas Edition

Yesterday was a great day! I was able to take Mackaylan to Nana's in order to be able to "tackle" many last minute projects before Christmas. I stayed in my "comfy clothes" all day long even when shopping at CVS and Bi-Lo! The number one priority on my list was to get my house clean before Christmas. For those of you who know me, I am usually pretty good about clearing the clutter and keeping everything picked up. However, I really struggle with the actual cleaning like dusting, mopping, etc. So...yesterday I vowed to myself that I would spend time doing both. I was going to take a few "before" photos, but was too embarrassed. Below are a few pictures of the end result....

Besides cleaning, I also finished all the wrapping that I am responsible for, went to the grocery store, assisted Mackaylan with packing up many toys and organizing her room and also hosted a small gathering of family and friends (more on that fun later!) Overall, it was a very busy and productive day! What project(s) did you tackle?

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! I hope you enjoy this special holiday greeting from Mackaylan! At the rate we are going she is sure to be on Broadway one day. Hopefully, Santa will leave me a Flip video so I can easily post more of her wonderful performances!