Where's Joey?

Joey loves snuggling with his monkey, blankie, and Minnie Mouse during his naps and at night. The other day I went in to check on him, and found this...where is Joey?

A New Christmas Tradition

On Christmas Eve day, we started the festivities with a fun pancake breakfast. Jas made us fun pancakes in the shape of reindeer, elves, and snowmen. The rest of the day we anticipated the arrival of jolly Old Saint Nick. I lost count of how many times Livi asked if it was time for church which was the kick off to our many Christmas activities! I love experiencing everything through Livi and Joey's eyes, the awe and excitement they hold with every little thing you do for them, makes life amazing!

Christmas Eve (Night)

On Christmas Eve the Heiple clan got all dressed up and headed to Christmas Eve Mass. I love Christmas Eve Mass for two reasons, the church community coming together to celebrate the real reason for the season, and all of the children drowning out Joseph's constant "singing" in church :)

After Mass, we headed to Grandma and Jim's house for dinner and presents. We had a delicious bowl of chili, it really hit the spot on a snowy day, and my favorite chocolate pudding dessert. Then we all sat around the living room, watched "White Christmas," and "Miracle on 34th Street," while opening presents...it was great! Livi and Joey had several favorites, they both got a chair for their room, Joey received a guitar, and Olivia received a tent for her bed. A BIG thank you to mom and Jim for a wonderful evening and for ALL of their generosity!

At the end of the night we hurried home, put baby Jesus in the manger, and set out cookies and carrots for Santa and his reindeer. Before tucking Livi and Joey in, we checked the NORAD tracker and saw that Santa was on his way, so we all quickly got in our beds so he would stop by :). It was a great night with lots of memories to cherish!

Christmas, Part 3

On Christmas morning, we woke up to find that Santa made it to our house! He must have thought that Olivia and Joey were very good, because he left quite a few presents under our tree! I think Olivia's favorite present was her Disney Barbie collection, and Joey's favorite present was his Bongo drums. After presents, we sat down and ate our traditional cinnamon roll breakfast, then started to get ready for our day.

After breakfast, we loaded up the car and traveled to Metamora to Grandma and Grandpa Heiple's house. The minute we walked in the door, all of the kids were ready for presents! It was nice sitting down and watching everyone get excited about their presents. Olivia's big present was her interactive globe and Barbie umbrella, and Joey's big gift was his remote control car. After presents we all sat down to a delicious lunch and spent the rest of the day playing games. It was really nice getting everyone together! A big thank you to Grandma and Grandpa Heiple for a wonderful Christmas!

Christmas, Part 4

On Monday, Grandpa Dressler came down and brought all of us some presents. Joey got a fun bowling game which he has already mastered :), and Olivia got a Barbie airplane. To say they were excited is an understatement, grandpa and I had to start assembling immediately after they opened their presents. We all went out to lunch and just had a nice afternoon together. Thank you grandpa for ALL of your generosity...we love you!

Christmas, Part 5

We ended our Christmas with a visit from Aunt Kelly and Uncle Rick. They came down on Tuesday and brought us all of us a few presents. Livi's favorite present was her "snuggly" sweatsuit and Joey loved his tanagram game. We all went out for a delicious lunch at Applebee's (my favorite restaurant) and had fun visiting. Thank you Aunt Kel Kel and Uncle Rick for all of our presents and a great lunch!!!

Togetherness

What sisterly love...snuggling in the bed together!

Olivia's Christmas Program

Yesterday, Olivia had her Christmas program at her preschool. It was absolutely adorable, and me being a sappy mom, I had tears in my eyes for most of the program. I just can't believe how big she is getting, and I love watching her interact with her classmates. Here are a few photos and videos of her program...

I absolutely love this video. It is just one song from the program, but it is so fun to see 4-year-olds perform!