Christmas Celebrations

Angela here!  Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas.  We started off our week with Chris being off work for a few days.  He was super dad and had some one-on-one time with both kiddos.  He first took Hudson to the Cosi Science Museum in Columbus, where they bonded while exploring the galaxy, the planetarium and playing with gadgets and inventions.  On Thursday, he had some girl-time and hung out with Adley while I had a half day at work.  He took her on a walk with Penny Lane and she LOVED being attached to her daddy...

Then we got gussied up and headed to church on Christmas Eve.  Hudson was very proud of his sweater vest...

After church, the clan headed to the Bockelman house for a fabulous Christmas Eve dinner.  We had two sweater-vest boys that were so cute to watch together.  They danced, played and ran around the house all evening.  They just knew how handsome they looked....

The Bockelman/Kemp crew!  For the past four Christmases, we have added a new baby to the family each year.  Now the question remains...is Shannon up to keep the tradition alive?!?  I'm sure Lolly could handle at least a dozen grandbabies, right?  :)

Then came Christmas.  We had been prepping Hudson all week that Damien the Elf would be leaving the next day.  We said our goodbyes, we blew kisses and Hudson went to bed that night with ease.  When he woke up Christmas morning, he was excited about his new toys for about two minutes, then he became very concerned about Damien.  He couldn't find Damien.  He looked everywhere.  Poor guy just couldn't except the fact that the elf went back to the North Pole.  He has asked about Damien every morning since.  Luckily, I bought a birthday cupcake elf suit (yes, a marketing scheme that I caved into).  But it looks like Damien the Elf will be back in the summer, so all is OK in the world.

Hudson got a train set, lots of Star Wars gear, a scooter and some games/books/DVDs.  The train set has been his favorite so far.  He wakes up and goes downstairs to play with it immediately.  And he likes to carry his Star Wars backpack wherever he goes.  But apparently it is too scary to actually keep it on his shoulders for more than two seconds.  Kids are silly.

Hudson graciously opened Adley's presents as well, which included some dolls, purses and building toys.  We kept the gift-giving small this year, as we anticipated an influx of goodies from Lolly and Pop.

Then we had our Christmas breakfast tradition, which consisted of Chris and Hudson making chocolate chip waffles.  Always a success!

After nap time, we headed to LolliPops house for dinner and round two of gift-giving.  

Lots and lots of goodies for these four kiddos.  So much so that I had to remove a bunch of toys from the playroom in order to make room for the new ones.  I now have a rotation system in place...there's no way I'm letting these kids get bored of their toys!

After a crazy evening, we played one last round of Flashlight Candy Cane Hunt- where we hide a ton of candy canes in the backyard at night and then the kids take flashlights and run around to find them.  Very fun to watch!  Afterwards, they settled down in their new sleeping bags to watch movies.  It was a great way to end the holiday!

We're off to Cleveland this weekend to see my brother and his crew.  Hope everyone has a wonderful New Year!

Santa, Santa and more Santa

Angela here!  Hope everyone is having a great holiday season thus far!  We have been busy busy busy meeting Santa, having breakfast with Santa, hanging out with reindeer and reading books with Mrs. Claus.  We started off with Spirit Week at school.  Each day was a different holiday theme.  One day happened to be "Santa's Helpers" day.  So the Hudson and Adley dressed up as cute elves...

When Hudson came home that evening, our two housekeepers left some gifts under the tree.  Hudson opened everyone's present for them, but he was overjoyed with his gift...a fish tank!  Luckily it is battery operated so I don't have to worry about keeping up with any more pets.  He turns it on every night while we read books.  And then before he goes to sleep, he lays the tank on one of the pillows next to him.  It's super sweet. 

Then Santa came to school to meet all the kids and pass out candy canes.  Hud was apprehensive at first, but after he realized he would get a candy cane, he jumped right in.  It was still too frightening to sit on his lap though, so he stood next to Santa.

Anderson was fearless and Adley was clueless, so we got a good photo of them.  Notice Claire missing...she was screaming in the background.

 

Miss Adley had her four month check up and she's tiny.  She's 25th percentile height and weight, 23.5 inches and 12 lbs, 4 oz.  But she's healthy and growing, so we're happy.  She is definitely the complete opposite of Hudson, who remains at the top of the charts.  She is our laid back child who just wants to observe the world or sleep.  She can roll over but would rather just relax on the play mat.  She gets giggly and animated when Chris sings to her and she prefers to be held if possible.

Our last stop this weekend was a three hour affair with Santa and his crew.  We started off with breakfast with Santa at the Hilton Garden Inn.  On top of eating a yummy buffet, we were also graced with elves and Santa's helpers.  There was even a "forest ranger" who brought his chipmunk and his dog (puppets) for the kids to pet. 

 Claire and Adley sported their matching candy cane ruffle outfits that Lolly bought for them!

Then we got to meet Santa again.  This is the third time Hudson has met the big guy and he gets braver with each visit.  This time, he had no problem sitting on his lap.  And when asked what he wanted for Christmas, he replied: "I want a big present. Not a little present...BIG present!"

Then we got to meet, feed and pet a reindeer, but that only lasted a few minutes because it is finally very cold here in Ohio.  We ended the afternoon at the local bookstore with Mrs. Claus reading a bunch of Christmas stories to us.  It was a fun afternoon filled with magical moments and happy little children.  It's cool to see the holidays through the eyes of a child.  It truly makes you appreciate friends and family and the memories you can make together.

Only five more days till Santa comes!

North Pole and the Elf

Angela here!  Hope everyone is having a great weekend.  We're keeping it low key as Chris and I have been slammed at work lately.  I feel like we never see each other Monday through Friday.  Nonetheless, Hudson and Adley are in full Christmas mode.  Last weekend we went to visit the North Pole via the LM&M Express in Lebanon, Ohio.  But before we headed off, I had to take a picture of Adley in case she slept through the entire event.  She dazzled the world with a "Santa's Sweetie" pink-sparkled shirt with ruffles everywhere.

Then we jumped on a train with the crew and headed to see Santa!  Hudson was a little timid at first, but quickly warmed up to all the chaos and fun.  Everyone wanted to sit in the best seat on the train, which was apparently Lolly's seat.

The elves stopped by with balloons.  The boys got swords and Claire got a butterfly.  Poor Anderson ended up popping his at the end, which resulted in a flood of tears and screams.  That evening, all Hudson could do was walk around the house with his balloon, saying, "Anderson pop his.  Be careful Mommy, be careful Daddy."

Once we got to the North Pole, there was room to run around outside, grab hot chocolate and cookies and then meet Santa and Mrs. Claus.  There was even a coloring station for the kids to create some art.  Anderson and Adley had no problem meeting Santa.  The other two, well just look at them....I think Claire took it the worst.

 Miss Adley ended up waking from her nap to see all the fun! 

Three happy kiddos....

 The Elf on the Shelf continues to be a big hit in our house.  The Bockelman crew came over one evening for dinner and after bath time, the boys put on their Elf pjs.  Which meant lots of giggles and dancing.

When Hudson woke up that next day, Damien brought him a Star Wars hat and stickers.  Damien has also brought him Tom Brady and Patriots stickers.  Can you guess which parent is supplying Damien with these gifts?  And just a side-note, Hudson did NOT name his elf Damien.  That was Chris and his ridiculous antics last year.  He says he is paying homage to the kid in The Omen.  Yes, the murder/horror movie about the anti-Christ.  Apparently this is funny.  I must have missed the joke, but it is cute when Hud yells out: "Damieeennnn!  There!  Over there!  I found Damien!"

After Damien found out Hudson was a good boy when getting a haircut this week, he brought him bubble bath.  Until recently, Hudson has been deathly afraid of sitting in the barber chair and getting a trim.  But I think Damien has now given him the courage to be a big boy.

 And Miss Adley is finally big enough for the ExerSaucer.  Her feet don't touch the ground, but she loves to swat and play with all the trinkets in front of her.  She has her four month check up next week.  And Hudson continues to be a good big bro and help entertain her.  Whenever she starts to get upset, he'll immediately stop what he's doing and run over to her as he says: "Hold on Addie, I'm comin!  I'm comin."  He then proceeds to shove a toy or paci or blanket in her face which makes everything better. 

 

Cute video of Hudson helping entertain Adley in her new toy.

https://youtu.be/YluMFgc0LO0

And lastly, we're getting ready for the cold Ohio winter (even though it was in the mid 60s this weekend).  Last year Hudson didn't have snow boots.  I pulled the redneck card and put plastic bags over his shoes, which he HATED!  Oh how those plastic bags were loud and scary.  So this year he upgraded to snow boots and could not be more pleased.  He had to wear them all day and point out "My boots, my boots!"  The snow coveralls are currently in transit via Amazon....

Happy holidays everyone!!  Only 13 more days till Santa comes!