"Right Down Santa Claus Lane..."

It is time to break out the new camera. Looks like we bought it just in time, as the old camera took it's last breath on Thursday during Quincy's birthday party. Sadly, this means I don't have pictures from the Holiday adventures this weekend, but I took a few with my camera, and Jerushia took a few with her camera, so hopefully I'll get them to my email and add them to our blog soon. (hint hint...Dan, email me photos pretty pretty please)

Friday night was our Christmas party at church. It was packed! It's hard to imagine that our ward only split 18 months ago, because it is huge. We had fun. Next time we will visit less and head straight for the food line. I was so glad to have a tupperware full of Kasey's frog eye salad waiting for me in the frig when I got home. The party was really fun, and Santa was there. I was helping in a card making class and Aaron was busy recruiting people to attend the service project for Saturday, and trying to find firewood for family in need that we didn't get a chance to take the girls around to all the different activities, but they went to a few.

Santa has finally earned the trust of Reese. She had ZERO interest to go sit on his lap on Fri. night, but did shake his hand, thank him for the car he gave her last year and ask for Barbie Diamond Princess, a Care Bear Castle and Little People for Christmas. I told her Santa only brings one present each year, so it will be a surprise to see which toy he chooses. Surprise for her, anyway...there are two Diamond Castle Barbies in Santa/Aaron's trunk. I decided to get the girls matching presents this year, so there won't be any fighting. Quincy just seems to want whatever her big sister has, and do whatever her big sister is doing, so I bought them both a My Little Pony for Christmas, and Santa is bringing them each a Barbie. I hope my plan works.

On Saturday, the Christmas fun continued! While Aaron was at a service project, I took the kids to Breakfast With Santa, where we had pancakes, "onange juithe" and sausage, and had pictures taken with Santa! This time, Reese hopped right onto Santa's lap, but Quin had a different agenda. She clung to my arm and I tried to pry her off and force her into Santa's lap (for our traditional "kid-screaming-on-santa's-lap-picture) but Santa's helpers told me to just pose in the picture too.
What? Who? Me? Pose with Santa? But I didn't take a shower today....and and...I don't WANT to be in the picture. I'd rather have a picture of my kid screaming than a bed-head picture of me that I'll want to burn later.

But, that is just what we got, and because I'm keepin' it real this Christmas, I'll post once I get my copy.

Following Breakfast With Santa, we bundled up in hats and scarves and sipped hot cocoa while we waited for the annual holiday parade. They had pony rides and camel rides, which I tried to bribe Reese to do, but she wasn't interested. Maybe next year...the camel rides looked awesome, and I secretly wished that Aaron had been there to watch the kids so I could take a camel ride myself, or perhaps with Quincy (who doesn't have a choice) on my lap.

The parade was AWESOME. The girls loved all the floats, especially the floats with Frosty or Elves on them. Quincy loved the floats with doggies on them. Reese had her first taste at fighting for candy being thrown from the floats, which was interesting. I was surprised that she wasn't more aggressive. I mean, she will push and shove at home to get what she wants, but she definitely lost the fight in her and didn't compete over the candy like I'd thought she would. She still came home with two pockets full, which I happily helped her eat.

We got the lights up on the house, and continued with weekend #2 of Traumatic Christmas Movie Night. This time it was a weird film I don't remember seeing before about Rudolph. Did you know Rudolf got his glowing nose from the dying Queen of the northern lights as a weapon to combat the Sector of the Ice World...which is basically a claymation version of the magic mirror from Snow White? Rudolf used his glowing powers from the northern lights to save the circus from going bankrupt, so the Holiday Ice Cream Giver guy could marry the pretty tightrope walker. Seriously. Weirdest holiday movie ever. Aaron and I couldn't stop laughing at how complicated the plot was. It got worse when Frosty showed up to see the circus with his snowkids and snow-wife, but started to melt when the holiday magic in his no-melt pendant was weakened by the Anti-Santa bad guy, who called everyone a "brat". So weird. I think next weekend we'll just watch Elf or something.

It was a wacky weekend, full of holiday fun. Aside from the First Presidency Christmas Broadcast on Sunday, I feel a little bit like we are on "commercial Christmas" overload, so today I'm taking the girls to pick out a nativity set for our house (we opened our storage bins to find our old ceramic one had been broken) and for Family Night tonight we will retell the story of our Savior's birth and attempt to teach our children the true reason for Christmas.