More Thanksgiving // Good Things

369. Black Friday shopping on the couch, with my laptop on my lap, a balsam fir candle lit beside me, a mug of cider, and no lights but the trees.  It was peaceful, until my little elves awoke and Mila discovered my cider.  

370. A slow and glorious Friday, trimming the trees and talking about all the stories that accompanied each ornament.  This was the first year both kids were actively involved, which meant the bottom third of the trees were fully stocked with precious ornaments.

They unwrapped every single ornament.  It was CUTE!

371. Little ones on Daddy's shoulders, taking turns with the most important part.

372. Always twirling. 

373. A post-tree decorating nap for both kids, and a hour to myself with the house all decorated.  And my first cocoa of the season.

374. Downtown's Holiday Hoopla.  The weather was as warm as it's ever been, and Mila was especially cute this year as she was overjoyed to be in her mittens, marching down the sidewalk exclaiming, "Let's go see, SANTA!" At one point, Cruz was on Beau's shoulders and Mila on mine, and a sea of hundreds of parents, children, and loved ones were singing "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," in unison.  It felt like we had stepped into a movie set of Elf, awaiting our own Santa Claus to surprise us with his entrance.  Soon, he came parading down Main Street in a lit up blue rocket ship, and like year's past, we marched behind him down our streets for the tree lighting, fireworks, and holding our littles tight to keep each other warm.  It's magical and memorable and one of our favorite holiday nights. 

375. An afternoon at the tree farm for an inaugural visit to see Santa.  And to play hide-and-seek in the evergreens for a bit. 

376. Quiet requests for Legos from Cruz, and "Belle dress" for Mila.  And a "Cinderella dress for mommy." :) 

377. All the tree pictures and how they make their faces glow.

378. Our second annual hot cocoa bar and all the cups that have been filled because of it. 

379. A winter scene puzzle spread out across our table. 

380. Board games by the fire.  With lots of flannel blankets.

381. Christmas pajamas for days.

382. Freshly bathed babes, popcorn, and a Freeform's 25 Days of Christmas.

383. When she falls asleep on me and I soak it up long before I put her to bed.  The perfect end to one good and long weekend. 

North Pole Party 2016

For five years, we have been celebrating December's arrival with a North Pole Party, thrown by our trusty and sometimes sneaky Elf on the Shelf, Boone.  Boone got his name for the bouquet of balloons I had as a centerpiece on the table that year, and our little Cruz, who had just turned two, was more interested in the "boons" than the elf himself.  Now, five years later, Cruz and Mila are both well-accustomed to all things Boone.  They look for him first thing each morning, giggle when they discover what he's been up to, and usually drag one or both of us out of bed to see him, too.  They are also well aware that they cannot touch Boone, thanks to Papa Curt who didn't know the rules last year.  I had forgotten this memory, but it was the first thing Cruz recalled about our little elf.  "Mommy, remember when Papa touched him and we had to write a letter to Santa?"  I wonder if Papa has forgotten that story?  

Pictures from our very first North Pole Party in 2012.  This little party tops my highest page views of any blog post, thanks to the 21,000 repins on Pinterest!  I have a feeling people are disappointed when it directs them to this, as Elf on the Shelf has exploded in the past five years.  

     

Every year, my North Pole Party comes together with help from the Target dollar section at the entrance of the store.  I love a good wrapping paper table runner, a fun centerpiece, and something festive for serving.  This year, I added two miniature Santa mugs to add to our cocoa bar, and some Christmas-themed place mats the kids color on.  Everything else comes together with things I've collected over the years, and I love how every year it looks different.

  
The menu this year included North Pole cupcakes (thanks, Scratch), sno-gurt with Santa hats for dipping, and one of our favorite party staples, snow covered donuts.  Cupcakes for breakfast was a treat in and of itself and the Greek yogurt balanced it out a little.  A little. :)

I put this together late last Saturday night after the kids went to bed.  I put on a Hallmark movie, poured a glass of wine, and brought our table to life (and Boone out of his box in the basement).  And as our own little prequel to that joy and surprise on Christmas morning, the kids were quite excited the next morning.  We woke up a little late, so went to church and promised to celebrate our North Pole "Brunch" soon after.

  

And we celebrated all right.  With cupcakes and read alouds about Boone, gifts of a new Christmas movie to watch and a new ornament to add to the tree, and predictions of what Boone would have up his sleeve this season.  So far, we've been pretty impressed.  From dressing up our family picture by giving us all Santa hats, to holding Baby Jesus in Mila's Little People nativity, to sharing a picnic with a group of beautiful Disney Princesses, Boone has made himself quite at home here so far.  Just 19 nights to go. :)

   

49/52

"a portrait of each of my children, once each week, in 2016"

 

Cruz: You haven't had the most patience with your sister lately and you turned down a kiss from your Great Grandma at the library on Saturday.  Surefire signs of growing up and boyhood that I'm not ready for!

Mila: Baby, you had a rough weekend.  First pink eye, and then, Sunday night, you bumped your front tooth, knocking it loose for the second time.  It's still there and doesn't seem to hurt or bug you, but we're not sure whether it will re-implant this time or not.  While we're not certain what will happen with that darn tooth, we are certain about one thing - you are one beautiful little girl who makes our world go round.