Holiday traditions

I've been horrible about posting things! Life is busy...good and busy so it leaves me little time to talk about what is going on!

Hagen is just sweet. He is having some issues with his listening skills so I have to make sure and make him look me in the eyes and give him specific instructions. Like this morning. "Hagen, I need you to brush your teeth, put these shoes on, and pick out a holiday book to take to school. Got it? OK, now what do you need to do?" He repeats and slowly does what is asked. He is just like me in that he has a million things floating in his mind and it is hard to concentrate...I get it.

Hazel is walking like a pro now. She has even started trying to run or walk very fast. She is the cutest little walker ever!! She is saying the sound of "H" when we ask her what Santa says. She is also sounding out a "D" when she sees Dapper, but that is pretty much her extent on talking. I'm sure she is going to be talking our ears off soon enough so we will just wait. She also just popped her 5th tooth!

I wanted to make a list of some of our holiday traditions and talk about some new ones we have going on!
1. Kirby our Elf has been here since Thanksgiving night. I'm not sure if Hagen cares this year to be honest. He likes to look for him in the morning and then when I say "Hagen, Kirby saw that" if he is up to no good he just kinda shrugs it off.

2. I love decorating the tree every year! I like to see our ornaments from the years past. To be honest I stress out about the yearly ornaments every year! This year I couldn't find a salt dough person. People kept saying for me to make them...they don't understand that these look like homemade, but not like crap...they are detailed and just not something I want to do. Hagen's this year is Batman and Hazel's is a little girl in a Christening gown.

3. Christmas Eve we are having my parents over to our house. We have decided that Ryan will smoke a brisket, Mom will make her famous cheese soup, and I will put baked potatoes in the crock pot and have some snacks. We don't want to be cooking all day...we just want to chill, drink, and eat. I can't wait and honestly love spending the day with my family and my parents...it is calm and relaxing.

4. Hagen is already excited about putting out reindeer food for Santa and the reindeer.

5. OK, people will be so jealous on this one. My parents give us money for Santa. They pay for Santa's gifts. So basically we don't spend money on the kids because Papa and Pia do it! They tell us to go shopping for the kids and they pay for it. It is wonderful!! Then they get things for the kids that they need or just stuff they want to get them. It is not that exciting sometimes to be honest. It's not like they give them the toy of their dreams...but they don't care. They want Santa to be the true hero. I just can't wait till the day to say, "you know all those fabulous gifts Santa brought you? Your Papa and Pia are the true Santa's". Of course it will be when they are way older...I can't wait to help Hagen and Hazel out with Santa when they have a family of their own...it means so much!

6. Our Santa gifts are all unwrapped and displayed. Most are out of the box and put together. I HATE having all the wrapping, twist ties, boxes, etc. Nice to have them all ready to play with!

7. Ryan and I skip gifts for each other. We are just so opposite that it is stressful. We do things throughout the year and would much rather focus on the family. BUT we have a new thing this year. Ryan will take Hagen to Target with $50 and tell him to shop for me...anything he wants to get me. I will then do the same for Ryan. I can't wait to blog about what he picked out!! Could be hilarious...

8. This year is Ryan's mom to have us for Christmas Day. I have a great time and love his family, but it is so hard to not have the holidays like you grew up knowing. It is sad that my parents will be alone on Christmas Day (My brother will be in NC with his wife's family). But it is good that on the year that we DO spend Christmas with my parents is when Adam's family is in town and is there too. I think that is one of the hard parts of getting married is switching holidays...Ryan and I started doing this when we started dating...

9. So my Dad gets envelopes with $100 in each to hand out to strangers that look like they could use some help. I have decided to do this also and can not WAIT to do so! Honestly, if you have a little money to spare this holiday season, put a chunk in an envelope, drive to an area that is needy, and pull over and hand an envelope that says "Merry Christmas" to a stranger...there is no feeling that matches it. Make sure the drive away and not look back...you will feel wonderful.

That's what I can think of for now...
TATA,
Carrie