Pajama party

I don't know what it is about pajamas but every year they get just as excited as the last year when they open their PJ's.  They know they get PJ's on Christmas Eve, yet just as soon as they open them they jump up and run to put them on.  Oh how joyously simple life is when you're a kid and the simplest present of pajamas makes you giddy with joy.  

It quite literally was a pajama party going on up in here.  

I was wondering why this picture seemed like such a small group then I remembered five of the cousins were missing from it visiting other family this year.

Presents from afar

The kids got to open presents sent all the way from Swaziland.

They were all super excited.  The boys got animals carved out of wood, the girls got some cute crocheted (?) African dolls with Sara and Leona getting Africa-shaped earrings with a dot on Swaziland.  Sara has worn hers everyday and in her words, "I'm going to wear these as often as I can so I can always remember who gave them to me."

Grandma's grave

Christmas Eve used to mean singing at Grandma Leona's grave.  We stopped doing it years ago but apparently (I didn't know this) my parents still go every year so my mom can be with her mom on Christmas Eve.  This year we decided to go since my mom and dad couldn't.  Which meant going out in the freezing snow.  Trista and I stayed home with some of the younger kids and cleaned up a bit but the others braved the cold.  

Searching for a grave buried in snow was a difficult task.

Happy and bright despite the cold.

The Christmas Story cast

This is what the clean up looks like

Christmas Eve 2012

Christmas was great this year.  It started with Santa's email video message to each of the kids letting them know they were on his "good" list.  The kids loved it.  You can tell by the look on Miles' face.  When they found out he had put them on his good list they were ecstatic.  

Then it was a night in with all the family.  While the dinner was getting finished the kids played some games including musical chairs (or papers) and Christmas charades.

Then a yummy dinner of turkey, potatoes, gravy, ham, salad, jello, corn, beans, and rolls.

And then a minute to win it game where they had to jiggle the box attached to the waist at the back to get as many of the bells out as possible.