Christmas 2015
I've been totally slacking on the blogging end this past weekend after all of the holiday festivities. I have this lovely Christmas post to do as well as a few other ones...and I just haven't been able to bring myself to write it up until now. To say the holidays were busy is an understatement! They were soooo busy (in a good way) and then I hosted my cousin's baby shower on the 26th AND then went to a wedding shower the following day. I usually blog during nap times but even those I've been gone during so my go-to blogging time has been cut short. I don't know why I just spent too many sentences telling you this, so I'm gonna stop now and go onto the main point of this post: CHRISTMAS!
So! Christmas was great this year...even after the stomach flu just went through us the day before. Nonetheless, it was so much fun and we were sooooo happy and blessed that Mike was off for the holidays (a rare treat!!).
Christmas Eve is Mike's dad's birthday, but we celebrated that on the 23rd this year. On Christmas Eve once Mike got home from work at 3pm he took a quick shower, we got the burritos up from their nap, into one of their ahhhhdorable outfits, and headed to my parents house for presents with the Pepin side and to do a big Christmas Eve dinner.
How cute were the kiddos?! Patrick is all about putting his arms around his sissy if an M&M is in his future. I'm totally not above bribery.at.all.
Once we got to my parents (before the rest of the masses got there) we had yummy appetizers and exchanged gifts with my parents, brothers, aunt Erin, and Goose and Kate. It was so much fun and Patrick loved every.single.one. of the gifts he opened, his or not. His cute little "oh wow!!!" and "what's that?!" exclamations he did after he (or someone else) open their gifts was just the cutest thing ever.
How cute is Rosie's bib Kate gave her?!! I just love it! And love that it can totally be used for future kiddos too :) Thanks Kate!!
The whole cousin/kid gang around the table! We were so happy Jordan and Kim were in from DC to spend their last Christmas as just 2 (baby girl Hicks is coming at the end of February!) and last in STL as my aunt Mary and uncle Jim are moving to DC to be with them and the baby.
Christmas Eve went so well and it was such a fun time getting to catch up with everyone and watch Patrick play with all of his new toys and show them to everyone. He understood Christmas so much more this year and it was so awesome seeing him play and experience the holiday this year.
This is hands-down one of my all-time favorite pictures EVER. Rosie with all of her Kathleen namesakes. I love love LOVE this pic and need to get it printed and framed for each and every one of them :)
3 years going strong on these type of pics!! Rosie got in on the fun this year that Patrick had been doing solo the past couple Christmases with the grandparents literally fighting over him.
Santa is so awesome and considerate! He always comes nice and early and lets me snap a pic of all of the gifts nice and neat under the tree before we head off to siestaland.
Christmas morning was wonderful! Despite Patrick waking up with puke in his crib (fluke stomach flu remnants I think--he was totally fine the rest of the day and up until now!), the kiddos got up around 9:30am and we had a quick breakfast and got to opening presents! EEEKKKK! Patrick was SOOOO excited and he was so good at waiting until it was time to open before tearing into the presents.
The kids both did very well this year with Christmas! Some highlights of the prezzies they got...
Patrick: Paw Patrol slippers, socks, shirt, and robe, Paw Patrol racers, Thomas Power Wheels, TinySuperheroes cape, and giant dinosaurs!
Rosie: headbands, dresses, shirts, new types sippy cups, bibs, wooden stacking toy, and a Hoho!
They loved all of their gifts and are still having a blast playing with each and every one of them!
After we unwrapped Santa's gifts at our house, we got dressed (poor Rosie was sausaged into her Christmas dress that was too tight but too cute not to wear, so sorry sister bear, you are wearing it!), loaded in the car and headed to my uncle David's for Christmas brunch with my mom's side of the family. The weather was GORGEOUS (sunny and 50!!)
It was great getting to catch up with my aunts and uncles and cousins and having Patrick run around and getting to play with some toys and his cousins as well. Rosie was just a little ham and enjoyed being passed around between everyone and just loving on everyone she got to cuddle with.
We only stayed maybe an hour and a half before we headed back home for naps (ALL AROUND!) and to get ready for Christmas with Mike's side. Holy busy already, right?!! RIGHT.
I shockingly didn't snap any pics opening presents or anything at the Mooneys on Christmas night. I think I was just exhausted and muscling through making it to the end of the night! Haha! Patrick and I were knee-deep in getting all of his new toys unboxed in record time so he could play with them ASAP.
We had a great time, again! with family and having the kiddos showered with tons and tons of presents for Christmas and lots of great conversations and such for us adults! I really do love the holidays so much (despite how flippin' busy they are getting (and growingly busy every.single.year!)) and it is most definitely my favorite time of the year.
Patrick actually spent the night at the Mooneys Christmas night because I was hosting my cousin's baby shower the next morning and I didn't want to have to hassle with having him "helping" me in the morning when 25 ladies were coming over.
The shower on the 26th for my cousin Jordan's wife Kim went soooooo well and they got a ton of great gifts for their new little lady coming in February. We hosted it upstairs (for a change!) cause a lot of the grandmas/aunts couldn't get downstairs and it actually worked out really well and everyone fit perfectly! Heck, maybe we'll host more partays upstairs in the future :)
Then yesterday I had my cousin's wedding shower...so it's been a super duper busy past several days! But all in all the Christmas season was wonderful and I am so blessed with such an amazing family, fabulous hubby, and 2 awesome kiddos. 2015 was such a fantastic year...I cannot wait to see what 2016 has in store! Speaking of, I guess I need to do my 2015 top 10 year in review...kinda like I did last year for 2014...stay tuned later in the week for that friends! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas season and I hope you have a great New Years later this week too! :)
