Christmas 2021

Merry Christmas!

We had a sweet simple Christmas at home together. The days leading up to it were a nice break from needing to get the kids to and from school. Westin and Bennett played really well together, and fought really well together... :) They always seem to need to get back in a groove together when the have a stretch of time of not going to school. I love when they're home.

Michael had Thursday and Friday off. Katie brought her boys up on Thursday and we made gingerbread men and snowflakes and had soup for lunch outside in unseasonably warm weather. The boys have so much fun all together. On Friday we went on our first out of the house adventure and took the boys to Sing 2. I really don't want to take Asher anywhere during this RSV and Covid season, but we found a theater with roomy spaced out seats and I nursed him 100% of the movie and he had a pretty cozy, protected outing. Camden was the harder to handle little man during the show... he wasn't too entertained during the more emotional scenes and was mostly there for the snacks and songs haha.

Christmas Eve was sweet together! Honestly it feels like we're just getting by right now, but all things considered, I feel like we're doing well. The crazy hits Michael and me harder at different moments, and then we tell each other how they won't be so little and exhausting forever and we'll miss parts later. We had salmon on Christmas Eve and roast beef on Christmas and no one really liked Christmas dinner haha. We haven't ironed out solid food traditions around Christmas quite yet, but we do always do a sausage and egg casserole for breakfast with cinnamon rolls. Sally froze some cinnamon rolls when she was here for Thanksgiving and I was so grateful to pull those out and not make a batch this Christmas. We walked toffee around to some neighbors on Christmas Eve as well and I'm so grateful for our sweet neighborhood.

The boys were so excited about Legos on Christmas. I texted my sister that I can't wait until we have kids who are old enough to just chill and do a puzzle with me and not need to be out of the house to not be crazy all the time. Then that afternoon Camden and Asher napped at the same time and I did legos with Westin and Bennett for an hour, and it was just so joyful for me. They were so much fun and loved doing that with me and Michael so much, and I just realized my dreams are closer than I realized and there are moments of what I need already to be had right now if I just recognize them and breathe off the stress of crying babies and screaming toddlers :) We just need more sleep. But we'll get it someday.

Westin loved that Santa ate cookies and that he brought a kid kayak. I LOVED Westin's self-illustrated and written Pete the Cat and his Wonderful Christmas book that he made me, plus his cute calendar that the First Graders made together. He's a thoughtful gift giver and I love him for it. Bennett was so excited to open his Daniel Tiger book and both boys loved their fighter jets from their Walker cousins.

I love having a Sunday after Christmas to watch our church service full of songs and have the crazy behind us and just take a pause again to reflect on the why of all this season. I cried every time I watched or listened to Far Away by the National Parks, especially holding Asher during that song and knowing this is my last little Christmas time baby. A newborn by a Christmas tree is as close as I get to Jesus in this world, I'm pretty sure. Just the sweetest feeling.

We're looking forward to another week with the boys home and more Legos to build :)