Christmas Day

**I am having trouble with Blogger and the spacing.....and it's driving me nuts!  Is anyone else having this issue?**

**I was just going through my posts, and realized that this one was never published!  I swear I hit "publish post" but apparently it never did.  So, better late than never, here is the Christmas post!**

Christmas Day, 2011.......whew, where do I even begin?  It was an amazing day, to sum things up.  But, allow me to elaborate a bit.
Christmas morning started out with just the 3 of us.  Carl and I got up early, and got ready, in preparation to wake up our little Wee Lad, so he could check out what Santa brought him.  When we walked into the living room, and Carson spotted a kitchen setting in front of the tree, the rest was history.  He was smiling from ear to ear, talking a lot of gibberish, and went right to work.  He had to check out everything that this kitchen had to offer.  All the doors that opened, and the noises it made.  We later found that these secret little doors would be a very nice hiding spot for Carson's things.  And, come to find out....our items as well.  The remote, our phones....they have been spotted in the kitchen already.  Carson had several other presents under the tree from Dad and Mom, that he wanted nothing to do with.  This kitchen was way too much fun to pay attention to clothes, and other boring things that would be hidden behind the wrapping paper.  The only gift he thought was amusing enough to stop playing with his kitchen for, was a set of Nerf guns.  I don't know who was more excited.....Carl or Carson!  They instantly started shooting at each other, and the laughter that filled the air is music to this Mama's ears.  Carson was full of smiles, laughter, joy, and peace.  He now responds with "Thank You" after everything, and he said it the second he saw his kitchen, and his other toys.  That makes my heart melt, instantly.

I got spoiled again this year by my lovely hubby, as I got a new laptop!  I am so thrilled with it, and he did an amazing job picking it out.  Our other laptop was having a lot of issues, and was about ready to go through hard-drive #2 in just 3 short years!  This new one has a lot bigger hard-drive, so I will have plenty of space to store all of my pictures. 

After our Christmas, we were off to my parent's house for some more fun!  Let's just say one thing:  We are spoiled!  My Mom always outdoes herself, and is an amazing gift giver.  Along with everyone else we received gifts from.  Baby Boy Brouwer got his first Christmas gifts, and they are nothing shy of the cutest things ever.  He got a few outfits, and it gets me even more anxious for him to be here, to fill these adorable clothes that are just waiting for him.

I would say that Carson's favorite gift that he got at Grandpa Gary and Frannie's house would be his grocery cart.  He loves to haul things around the house, and you never know what you will find in his wagons at home.  So now we have another spot to look for hidden gems at home :)  He is so funny toting around the house, as he picks up random things to place into his cart.

Our big gift that we received this year was a double stroller.  It will come in handy next Summer after the little one is here, and we want to go and do things with both of the kiddos!  I am so excited to use it.  Let the fun begin with two little Wee Lads :)

Natalie was as cute as can be in her Santa outfit, and she loved her new jumper that she got from Frannie and Grandpa Gary!

Carson (and the other grandkids) got a new table from the Amish.  It is the neatest table, and so beautiful!  Carson also got a lego table from Uncle Chris and Aunt Kasey that we decided to take home.  So, the nice table is staying at Frannie's house!

Kasey got a BIG jar of pickles that she seemed pretty excited about.  She is pregnant, if you are wondering :) 

I drew my brother's name for Christmas this year, and he seems to get more difficult to buy for every year.  So, a basket full of goody- bucket food is what the gift was this year.  He loved it, and I know it is a practical and useful gift.  Win-win in my world! 

Carl got a Bengals t-shirt.  Or, should I say another Bengals shirt.  He loves to get new Bengals attire, so he was very happy with his gift!

Carson gets very hot easily, and he isn't bashful to get stripped down to nothing but his diaper!  So, that is how he spent most of Christmas morning.......in nothing but his diaper.

G&G Larson were also able to join us for a while Christmas morning.  They were there to enjoy the delicious brunch that us kids pulled off. 

By the end of this Christmas, the back of our van was FULL of goodies.  We are so blessed, and overjoyed with everything.
After Carson got a short nap at Frannie and Grandpa Gary's, we were off to another Christmas celebration.....G&G Brouwers.  We ate some more munchies, another meal, and we were prepping ourselves for another round of presents.  Carson was a little off that night, as I feel the busy/tiring day was catching up with him.  He was rather whiney the whole night, super clingy, and didn't want much to do with the other kids or presents.  So, we had to improvise a bit.  We stayed towards the back of the room, instead of being in the middle of all the action.  We let Carson open presents at his own pace, and assisted him with a few.  We let him do his own thing, in an attempt to keep the whining at a minimum.  It worked....sort of.

This would be our attempt at getting all of the grandkids in one picture.  They are all there, just not all looking, as you can see.  Carson was not thrilled about taking a picture, and Baby Tyler is hiding in the chair behind Kennedy.

Kennedy was SO excited about their Christmas present from Grandpa and Grandma.  A new kitty! 

We were there for munchies, another round of food, presents, and good company.  The kiddos always have so much fun together, especially opening gifts.  After a few hours at their house, we called it a night.  Carson was exhausted, as I think we all were.  But, we wouldn't have it any other way.  The fact that we have so many family members to see and be with, is truly something to be thankful for.  We said our good byes, and after we got home, we all crashed.
The day after Christmas was all about putting away, cleaning, organizing, and more putting away.  Carl and I had our work cut out to try and find space for all of Carson's new toys.  We re-arranged the basement a little bit, and made Carson's "toy room" a bit more user friendly.  He now has his own little area, and I have a feeling we are going to be spending a lot of time downstairs.

This was Carson's 3rd Christmas, which seems so bizarre to think about it.  Not to mention, it is our last Christmas as a family of 3.  Now that is something to get excited about!
We are so thankful, and truly blessed beyond words this Christmas Season.  We can't dish out enough "Thank-yous" to everyone, as to show how grateful we are for everything.  Not to mention, for the true reason of this wonderful Season!

Another Christmas has come and gone, but that doesn't mean that we can't still be Joyful.
A new year is upon us, and as crazy as it seems that 2011 is coming to a close, we are so thrilled to see what the new year will bring for our family.

I hope that you all had a Wonderful Christmas!  Peace on Earth, to all of my family and friends.

Christmas Eve

**Posted about a month late.  I am really behind these days!**

Christmas Eve was wonderful for us this year.  We spent the whole day just hanging out, and having quality time with each other.  The one thing I love about this time of year is the time we get to spend with family.  Especially when we can just hang out, and enjoy each other's company.  And that is what Christmas Eve was for us this year.  It was pure bliss.

Every year, we attend the Bethel Reformed Christmas Program on Christmas Eve to watch the Kalkwarf kids perform in their Christmas program.  It was a lovely service, just like always.  It got a bit long this year, as 1-1/2 hours is too much for a 2 year old to sit still, in the dark, and stay quiet, but Carson did very well.  We were very proud of him after we escaped the busy crowds that evening with a sack of peanuts, and an apple. 

After we got home, we played hard.  We let Carson open his one gift, which were his Christmas pajamas to be worn that night.  He was pretty excited to wear his pajamas, but he was also excited to open more presents.  We had to stop him, and explain that he could open the rest in the morning.

After we got our little Wee Lad to bed that night, Santa went to work.  I was so excited to see what his reaction would be to what Santa was bringing, and it was nothing shy of amazing. 

I love how our Christmas Eve is the calm before the storm, but in a fabulous way!  We all know to just relax, and enjoy our day together, because come morning time, it is a very busy day for all of us.  And, we love both extremes! 

Merry Christmas to all of you!  Much love from our family, to yours.

Christmas at Grandpa Mike's

On Friday night, December 23rd, we kicked off the holiday weekend with our 2nd Christmas celebration of the year.  We headed out to my Dad's house for Christmas with Papa Mike.
Carson was in a fabulous mood that night, which made the evening that much more fun.  I just love it when he warms up quickly to his surroundings, lets go of us, and has fun!  And, you could tell by the look on his face, and the shrill sounds that were coming from his mouth...that he was having so much fun.  Uncle Chris, Uncle Nathan, and Papa Mike were all having fun wrestling with Carson, and he was loving all the attention.

 

We snacked, ate food, opened gifts, and played.  Carson was completely wiped out after his busy evening, and he slept really good that night.  He got some new blocks as a gift, and he took right to them.  He opened the package right away, and instantly dumped the bag out.  That is what you are supposed to do with all the blocks, right!?  :)

Carson got some assistance from some helpers with his blocks. He thought it was so funny to build a tower of blocks really high. And, with Nathan's help, and a few boxes of diapers, they got the job done. Carson would laugh every time they fell on Papa Mike who was laying on the floor.

Carson also got a Mr. Potato head, that he was a bit leery about at first.  I don't think he quite knew what to do with the thing, and was kind of scared of it.  We put that toy down, and moved to the next one rather quickly.  He finally took to it a little later, but still didn't show much interest in it.  Maybe in the near future he will.  Until then, he has plenty of toys to keep him occupied.  Trust me!

Carson helped hand out gifts, and open gifts for others.  Apparently he thought he would lend a helping hand, and assist Natalie in opening her gift(s).  I am sure she didn't mind, though!  Next year she may put up a fight, but this year she was content as can be laying on the floor, watching all the action.  A few times her eyes would flinch really quickly, as her monster of a cousin would get really close to her, or get really loud.  It's ok Natalie, I do the same thing :)  Ha.

And of course, we all had to get some snuggle time in with the precious little girl.  She is such a sweetheart!

Carson and Natalie gave Grandpa Mike a fun "Candy Story" as a Christmas gift this year.  It was a lot of fun to read, and I am sure Grandpa is enjoying the candy.  We opened the sour patch kids, and Carson actually really liked them.  We were all so shocked at how he didn't even respond to the sour taste.  He also fed Grandpa a few of them.......but Grandpa didn't think they were as tasty as Carson.  Ha!

We had a really nice celebration to kick off our busy, and very delightful Christmas weekend.  It was the first for the weekend, and it was nice to split them up a bit.

Baking Day

Last Saturday, my Sister hosted our 3rd Annual Holiday Baking Day.

It was another huge success, and we all had a lot of fun!  I had a little helper for some of the recipes, and that always makes things interesting :)  Carson is very good at stirring, but gets out of control some most times.  It is usually a guarantee that you will find flour surrounding his area, and this time, it included the floor.  He also helped me place the cookies in the little muffin tin compartments.  After placing a few balls, he then took it up a notch.  I feel like all boys do this, right?!  He then started to throw the balls, and see if he could hit one of the compartments in the tin.  A few "thuds" of the cookie dough ball later, and he usually scored.  When my cookies dough was gone, and I was ready to put the tin in the oven, I figured out I had some re-constructing to do.  The little pistol had been eating some of the cookie dough, and they no longer looked like balls!

  

And, in between helping me bake, Carson and Natalie were with their lovely Babysitter.....Frannie!  She was in charge of the kiddos for the day.  Natalie is always content as ever, and Carson is just plain busy. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Check out all the amazing goodies that we made that day!  Everything was truly amazing.

 

 

 

Carson also found this dancing snowman to be rather entertaining.  He would turn it on and off about a hundred times, and then throw it on the floor.  He is a gentle little boy....most of the time :)

My Sister always does an amazing job hosting any sort of party.  We had an amazing lunch, and the boys joined us for supper.

It was a wonderful, and tiring day.  Now we have our plates of goodies to dish out to people.  The fun part of it all......sharing the love with others!