*Making a gingerbread house.
I usually let a grandparent do this with the kids but this year we forgot to do it when Omie was here at Thanksgiving and we won't have any other visitors this year. I wanted to wait for Brett to get home from work to help but he was stuck in traffic (gotta love Chicago traffic), so I braved it with the kids alone. I have a history of not reading directions and not being patient enough and my walls usually crumble on the gingerbread house. I didn't know it at the time, but I bought the best gingerbread house kit ever! It has a tray with holes to put the gingerbread pieces in so it can't fall down. The icing is even premade, all you have to do is knead it and cut off the tip. I will always buy this kit from now on....except I bought it on clearance at the end of the year last year and I'm not sure where I bought it!
The kids love making their gingerbread house each year. Oh yeah, they love eating the candy too!
*Another tradition we have done for many years is putting the "clapper" on the tree.
Emalyn has learned to walk by the tree and start clapping. She sees us do this to turn the lights on or off. I'm not sure if she knows we do it because of the lights or if she thinks you just clap when you walk by a Christmas tree. So funny!
Maddi and Emalyn clapping.
And now admiring the lights. Emalyn has been really good with the tree. Occasionally she'll gently touch an ornament but for the most part she just looks at the tree.
*Cody, the elf.
He watches the kids all day and then reports back to the North Pole each night. When he returns he hides in a different spot. He finds some fun places to hide such as this. He took a cross off the wall and hung himself on the nail.
* We always go to cookies with Santa at the clubhouse.
Emalyn was fine talking to Santa when Maddi was standing holding her but as soon as they turned around for a picture, she started screaming. I have a picture of each of the kids screaming in Santa's lap so it's perfect!
Maddi's favorite part is the craft making ornaments.
*We started a new tradition this year with this Christmas Advent book. We used to read a different Christmas book each night and let the kids take turns choosing which book to read. I met the author and illustrator of this book at MOPS this year and loved the idea of it. You read the story of Jesus by reading the story behind door one on December 1st, door 1 and 2 and December 2nd etc. On Christmas day you read the whole story of Jesus from doors 1-25. We have really enjoyed it this year and love the fact that it keeps the real meaning of the season at top of our minds.
We also make my grandmother's roll out cookies and the kids decorate them, but we haven't done them just yet. I am glad that our family has so many fun traditions and hope they continue for many years.
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