We packed a lot into this Christmas season, starting with our annual visit to the Big Guy - yes, Santa at the Mall of America. When we were next in line to see him, the kids nervously peeked around the corner to catch a glimpse of him. When it was our turn, he was his usual charming self and quickly put them at ease, sitting on the floor facing them. No tears this year! Ellie told him she wanted a Crayola Marker Maker; Aidan asked for a remote control helicopter. Maddie and Zoe both asked him for a Zoomer robot dog. 
Later that day, we got together with the neighbors to make our annual gingerbread houses. After last year's trauma of Winnie eating Maddie's house, we decided to just go with one house for our entire family. We may need to rethink that for next year, though. Having 6 people provide input on decorating one house didn't work so well. Oh, and I must remember to buy one preassembled next year! 
Ellie and Aidan got in the spirit of the season and asked me to take their "family portrait" for their Christmas card with their doll daughter. I'm pretty sure this was Ellie's idea, though Aidan went along with it without question.
One new thing we did was to attend our church's Christmas Concert, which was truly amazing and that we'll plan to make an annual tradition. They had an associate conductor from the Minnesota Orchestra along with some orchestra members, ballet dancers, aerialists, figure skaters, and wonderful children's as well as adult choirs. The music was outstanding and we had a really great time! The Christmas service at Hosanna was really moving as well, and the kids' attention was certainly held by various live animals - 2 camels, goats, a calf, chickens, ducks, etc.- that they had in a living nativity scene on stage.
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| The manger in the live nativity |
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