Christmas Photos

The boys were excited to see that Santa came while we were at Christmas Eve service.

They are so adorable in their matching sweaters. I love it!
I think they are excited!

Isaac wanted to take a picture of Mommy and Daddy.

Here are they boys with their cousins. So cute!

Here is a family photo.

Grandma and Grandpa with all the kiddies.

After a fun evening of opening and playing with presents. They kids are getting ready for bed. I am reading all of them a story. I think that was my favorite part of the day.

Makin' Cookies

We tried to fit in lots of Christmas traditions this year. We spent one Sunday afternoon making Christmas cookies. The boys LOVED it. They could not believe how many kinds we made in one day! They boys favorite kind were the cutout sugar cookies.

This is a picture of our fireplace. We hung a little stocking for the new baby. They boys thought it was neat. It was kind of fun to see how long it took people to notice when they visited our house. Usually did not take long.

The Polar Express Train Ride

As a special Christmas treat for the boys (and Scott, Traci and me) we got tickets to ride the Polar Express train on the Boone Scenic Valley RR. It was awesome! We had the perfect weather, a fresh layer of snow coated the landscape, and the RR makes a magical trip.

The boys are posing with their Golden Tickets before the ride.

A quick family pose while we wait for the train to start moving.

Traci and Isaac enjoy their hot chocolate. The elves did not dance and sing while they served it, but the hot chocolate hit the spot on the cool ride.

Ethan and I are enjoying our hot chocolate.

We even got a visit from Santa. He gave the boys jingle bells. We sang Christmas songs and enjoyed the beautiful views while we rode along the Iowa countryside. What a fun day!

Decorating the Tree

The boys had a great time putting ornaments on the tree. We had the Christmas music going, snacks set out, and it was really fun.

Isaac concentrated most of his ornaments on this beautiful branch.

Ethan is concentrating hard to get his ornament on just right.

The boys are posing with their decorated branch. It cracks me up how they like to hang them all together. The branch was almost touching the carpet. At first I thought about "fixing" the ornaments after they were interested in other things, but then decided that I liked the tree just the way they did. We left the ornaments just where they put them all season long.

Isaac's 5th Birthday

We had a fun party for Isaac's 5th Birthday. The whole family came over and enjoyed the day with us.

Isaac chose a Hotwheels Cake for his birthday. That is his favorite toy to play with.
Aunt Traci came the night before the party. She made Isaac a Gigantic Cupcake for his birthday. "Why have a normal cupcake, when you can have a GIGANTIC Cupcake."

We played a family game of football in the back yard. Here Ethan tries to tackle Grandma.

Isaac and Cael showed off their catching skills.

We were so glad to have Cael and Avery over! They are so fun! The boys love playing with them. Later in the day we found Ethan and Avery hiding in Isaac's room, just giggling together.

Crazy Uncle Corbin! He never fails to get the kids to laugh (and the adults).