The 27th

The family time didn't end on the 25th. We had fun stuff planned the rest of the weekend. The 27th we went shooting with Chad's family and then had brunch with the Sutton extended family.

Shooting was COOOOOOOOOLD! We all bundled up and tried our best to stay warm. 

 Jon, Rand, and Chad made it into the Top Shot competition. They had fun destroying some old Christmas ornaments.

 After we were done shooting we headed to Laurie and Laurie's house. My dad told the boys to bring their scooters to ride on their new concrete. They were in heaven and hardly stopped to eat breakfast!

 A group photo -  

 The kids were excited to get their new hats (and $20) from Laurie and Laurie.

 

Grandma's Sweater

Aunt Laurie, Chad and I ended up with Grandma Sutton's Christmas sweaters. We had fun wearing them to the Sutton Christmas brunch. I think we are doing her proud and it was a fun way to keep Grandma in our thoughts :)

Love you Grams!

Christmas Morning

Vance woke us up a little after 6:00 Christmas morning. My parents were spending the morning with us so we called them as soon as woke up and they hurried over. The boys (not-so-patiently) waited for them to arrive.  We snapped a quick picture at the top of the stairs and headed down to see if Santa had come.

 He did! Santa brought Keller some Rescue Bots and a big car ramp.

 Santa brought Vance a wakeboard, headphones, Minecraft for the PS3, and an iTunes gift card. Just what he asked for!

 I didn't really take pictures during gift opening. I just wanted to soak it all in. The boys are at perfect ages for Christmas magic. They were beyond spoiled and had so much fun opening all their gifts. Here they are trying out their new scooters inside -

 After we were done with presents we played for awhile and headed over to the Waldrons.  We had breakfast and then made gingerbread houses.

 Those who didn't make gingerbread houses played games and worked on a puzzle. Keller showed them all of his new cars :)

 Our finished gingerbread houses -

 Mine -

 Zach and Vance's -

 Uncle Zach took Vance on a ride on his new motorcycle.  Vance already has an item on his wishlist for next Christmas. Keep dreaming son!

The rest of the day we spent hanging out with different family members at a few different houses.  It was busy but mellow at the same time. 

We had such a great Christmas!!!

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve is one of my favorite nights all year long. We started out by going to church and it was so nice. I felt like it was a nice way to remind our family one more time the real reason we celebrate before the more materialistic side of Christmas was in full swing.  After church we went to my parent's house.

 Everyone was putting the finished touches on their food and visiting. Perhaps my favorite memory of the night is Amy literally catching her oven mitt on fire. It was hilarious! She's quite the chef :)

 My mom had the table set up so pretty!

 I didn't get any pictures of anyone eating dinner because I was too busy eating all of the delicious food. Everything was so yummy!

After dinner we picked up a little and then had our Christmas program.  Vance started things out with Little Drummer Boy. He did great. When he finished we were all clapping and cheering him on and he had the most adorable smile on his face. Priceless!

 Keller showed off his singing/bike riding skills to Jingle Bells and Rudolph.

 Logan played a number on his euphonium. Not too shabby for only playing for a few months!

 My mom requested David, Dad, and I play a trumpet trio. Not an easy task for a pregnant mama! I swear I was going to pass out by the end. It wasn't perfect but she loved it anyway.

 Next up was the White Elephant.  This is always the favorite activity of the evening. We all went home with something fun :) 

 We Facetimed the Ogdens while my parents opened up their gift from all of us. We all gave them money to go on a ski trip. Amy made this adorable gift basket with all the cash. We snapped a quick picture with the Ogdens on the iPad screen :)

 I had the idea the get Dippin' Dots for dessert. They are a little pricey but I found a good deal and my mom ordered them to surprise the kids. It was a huge hit for the kids and adults!

 After dessert we headed home to do the rest of the Christmas Eve activities with just our family.

Vance left our elf, Dasher, a note. It was so cute!

 We all gave him one big hug and said goodbye 'til next year!

 The boys each picked a cookie to leave out for Santa.  They also insisted we leave him a glass of eggnog and milk to see which one he would drink. (He drank the eggnog)

 Then we opened up pajamas. Usually I try to get something cute, but this year I decided to be fun and get everyone super hero jammies.  Not the cutest but a huge hit!

 How cute are these Captain America slippers?!

 My three loves - 

After picture time it was off to bed so Santa could come!