Jeff and James needed to stay home, but it felt good to go to church and enjoy the Christmas sacrament meeting. The kids sang “Away in a Manger” again, and Cohen even had a reading part. He seemed a little annoyed that they made him sit alone up on the stand for some strange reason, and I am still not really sure what that was about, but he didn’t let that get in the way of doing his reading. He did a fantastic job, and it was such a sweet way to get into the Christmas spirit.
Let The Decorating Begin!
After several days of baking gingerbread, then assembling most of the lighthouse last night and the rest this morning, it was finally time to decorate “James’s Lighthouse.” The kids were buzzing with excitement. Jeff stepped right in again and helped James with the decorating, which was such a relief because Lydia and Cohen are confident decorators and were happily working away on their own while I took pictures. This was a huge build, though, and by the time it came to decorating their people and little houses, the kids had pretty much run out of steam. Once they were worn out, I jumped in to add some finishing touches to the lighthouse. I genuinely love decorating the house, and honestly, it can be hard to watch the kids go to town with their wild style, but I know I only have a few more years of them wanting to do this with me at all, so I am trying to give them as much creative freedom as I can. In the end, I thought our finished lighthouse looked fantastic.
James’s story
While I was snapping pictures, I overheard James giving Jeff very specific instructions about how to pipe the frosting. Curious, I put my camera down and watched Jeff work. I could not help laughing as it slowly dawned on me what James was having him create. When Jeff finished, I said, “Jeff, James just had you draw a butt.” The eruption of laughter from the kids was absolutely priceless. The funniest part was how completely innocent James was while giving his careful intentional instructions and how unaware Jeff was of what he was actually drawing. It was just so funny, and it still makes me laugh every time I think about it.
The Final Product
Last Night Of Hanukkah
We celebrated Hanukkah a little early today because Jeff thought it would be fun to give the kids their gifts ahead of time so they could enjoy them all day long. Each kid unwrapped a rather large LEGO set, which instantly made the morning feel special. Lydia wasn’t thrilled with hers at first, but she eventually warmed up to it and started building her car, completely absorbed in the details. I love this Hanukkah tradition of ours.
