The rest of Christmas

More Christmas pics. . .as you can see, the kids LOVED Christmas! It was fun having kids old enough to really enjoy it this year. Brayden was a hoot. They struggled a bit (like we knew they would) on waiting their turn and showing some of their inborn selfishness. . .but, did good overall. They were quick to listen and choose to wait and be excited for others after a little reminding. Greg and I were both proud of all of them.

First of all, here are some other Christmas Eve shots. At my mom's family Christmas, Santa always makes an appearance. What's really funny is that the older cousins (who "do" Santa) figured out that it was my dad the last couple of years. . .so, just to mess with them, my cousin Eric took the gig for this year!

As you can see. . .Gracie still LOVES "Anta". She kept calling his name and looking for him all night. She would have sat in his lap forever. Which is particularly funny since she doesn't really go to other people well. This is Davis and Jordan. . .Last month, I blogged about Jordan becoming an official member of our family when my cousin Jenny finally completed their adoption through the state. So, these are the 2 newest members of the extended Anderson family for this year!

These are from Christmas morning. We got up early (shocker!) and opened stockings as soon as Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Laura, Uncle Slim and Uncle Jimmy came over. How funny is this one? What a classic face! This boy loves his Diego! (except for the fact that I bought this at CVS and it already doesn't work!)

After stockings, we headed over to our friends' house for breakfast. . .a blast, but sorry, no pics! We came home for a nice long nap, then off to my parents' for present time there.

These were Davis' two favorites. He LOVES his new FP3 player and fun earphones from Nana and Grandad and LOVES his soccerball from "Tete" and Uncle David.
Davis and Aunt Stephani, who my kids call "Tete" (pronounced TayTay)

Gracie loved her new dollies all around!
Brayden loved all of his presents! suprise, surprise! He especially loved his scooter and leapster from Nana and Grandad

After presents, we headed over to my Aunt Shannon and Uncle Barry's home. For more info on them, read my festivus post! They are the best! We got there a bit late and hung out with my grandparents, cousins and my aunt's family too. It was a wonderful time and my kids LOVE going over there. . they have 4 kids, 3 dogs, 2 cats, multiple drum sets and toys and oh yeah, lots of kids to play with too! The kids got Rock Band so my kids basically watched them do that. . .except for Davis, who was pretty sure he was ready to be a drummer already!

All in all, a wonderful holiday filled with tons of memories and special times. It was so special to have Davis home with us. Our recent trip definitely helped keep us a bit grounded during this time of greediness. . my kids are already tired of hearing, "well in Africa the kids. . .". I'm pretty sure this is the most amazing December ever! Thank you Jesus !!!