Christmas Eve

We had a great Christmas eve. We spent the morning making presents for each other with some awesome craft kits that came in just in time! (We had ordered them through our Charter School.) Craig helped Ceci make a snowman pin for Grandma, a necklace with felted balls for Bella, she made a beaded bracelet for Olivia and a flower pin for me. Olivia made tons of stuff, a bracelet for me, a hair clip for Ceci, earrings for Bella, a pin for Grandma. She also made bracelets for Ceci and Bella. Bella made me some red felted ball earrings, she sewed beads on them. She then made purple ones for Olivia and a flower hair clip for Bella. We tried not to say what was for who to keep it a surprise, but it was a little easy to guess! :) By the way, Lala does NOT have a punch mustache, she has chapped lips :(

We literally crafted for hours!

We discovered that somehow Ceci had taken door #24 off of our Advent Calendar to reveal the baby Jesus without us doing it with her! I thought this nativity picture was soooooo adorable.

Later, we went out and delivered some Christmas treats to some of our friends and the people that Craig home teaches. We had a blast leaving some things on peoples doorsteps and then visiting others. It just felt good to share with others and be able to see our various friends on Christmas eve. A huge highlight for me was visiting my friends, Gary (left) and David Ross (right), friends from my early childhood. I've been in touch with Gary recently, which has been very special, we went to primary together 30 plus years ago! I am now friends with his wife and Bella is good friends with their daughter at church. But tonight was my first time seeing David!! He was one of my very first crushes (I was 9) and it was so great to see him again! I was sad that we couldn't stay longer.

We came home to have a wonderful dinner of pasta and meatballs that Craig and his mom had worked on before we left. We lit our advent wreath and the candle in the middle as well which was so pretty.

Afterwards, we decorated our tree with dried apples and oranges we had made along with our popcorn chain, paper chain, and other ornaments we have made over the past couple years. We finished by putting the angel Olivia made last year on the top!

We were all so tired, we did not do the Nativity story. Instead, we read "The Night before Christmas," put out cookies and went to bed! I hoped that the girls had visions of sugar plum fairies dancing in their heads!