Christmas Eve at Home

We spent Christmas Eve at home this year.  We had many opportunities to go to local evening services, but in the end we stayed home and focused on our Jesse Tree devotions as a family.

The kids exchanged gifts among themselves Christmas Eve morning, and then Dad took them for a walk.  While they walked, I mixed up a batch of sugar cookie dough and made a batch of Chex mix for my boys.

It was unseasonably warm out, but I still bundled dolly in her little snuggly suit that Aunt Kea loaned us.

Sugar cookie time!

Natalee got a Gingerbread House kit for her birthday and she and Daddy assembled it.  She decorated the roof and one side, and then generously gave each sibling a side to decorate.

Dad helped her cut the fondant.

Since we were traveling to my folks' Christmas Day, we decided to give the children their gifts from us on Christmas Eve.  Mike and I have long ago decided that having five children means that when they are grown we aren't always going to get to celebrate Christmas holiday on Dec 25th with them, and so we have chosen to be flexible now so that our kids feel flexible about it later in life.   Rather than rushing through presents on Christmas morning and then leaving them lay to get on the road, we want to enjoy a time of giving and receiving with our kids and so we exchange gifts just whenever it suits us.  This year we did it Christmas Eve.  One year we did it several days after Christmas.  Some years it will be on Christmas Day.  The kids have started enjoying some of the mystery of when our "party" will be, and we hope as they grow that they understand that what is most important to us is the coming together to be with one another.

This year the children each had three gifts from us.  It's funny, because even with "only" 3 gifts each, I'd felt a little like we'd overdone it, and then in comparison to others they probably feel like our children got very little.  (And that's why you don't compare!)  This was probably one of our more extravagant Christmases in actuality.

Our theme was "something to wear, something to read, and something fun."

Instead of putting the kids' names on the packages, I labeled each with a 1, 2, or 3 and then a symbol.  That way the kids didn't know whose gifts were whose under the tree.  More mystery.

Gifts #1 were the "something to wear."  

Evie's box had a copper & pearl swaddle, and a butterfly dress up costume (for later...there was a theme).

Zayden's was a ninja costume...

Ameliya's was a Wonder Woman costume!

Xavier got a ninja costume, and a pair of prescription sunglasses! (he always wants these and I always forget to order them- this year I succeeded!)

Everyone getting costumes kind of put a pause on gift opening....and this is why I love doing it when we can take our time...

Natalee got a butterfly costume, and a pair of leopard print leggings. (That's why Ev got the butterfly costume, too...to match sis.)

Gifts #2 were "something to read."  Each child had a box of Usborne (of course!) books.  They looked through them, but the books got more attention in days to follow, and that's okay!  I made sure all 4 older kids had an activity book and a sticker book in among their stash.

This book reads to him...

As I suspected, they have all enjoyed each others' books, too.

Gifts #3 were "something fun."
A Lego set and Play-Doh set for Zayden...

A Spirit stable set for Mia...

Batman sheets and Captain America Legos for Xavier...

Frozen Monopoly and a birdfeeder/seed for Natalee....

By this point Evie had fallen asleep, but later she opened her floor mat and water play mat.

Then it was time for supper and playing, showers and reading, and being together.  

The children each left a cookie they'd decorated and 9 carrots out for Santa and the reindeer, and then put out the reindeer food on the lawn that they'd made at Penncember.

Dad and I waited up a long time until everyone was asleep, to set out Christmas morning gifts.  Xavier, who is usually awake the latest, competed in place with this new kid on the block!