Christmas Morning

Santa came!

Stocking stuffers

 Santa brought a Cinderella Castle for Mia...

 And a Lego rocketship and Launchpad set for Luke

 

 Of course, Santa wouldn't forget Brooklyn (and Linus, too)

 

Luke and Uncle Todd spent the better part of the day building Legos

Christmas Eve

We celebrated Christmas Eve here at home this year.  We had a great meal and an evening full of exchanging gifts.

 

Day, Paw, Mommy, and Daddy started off the evening for the kids by sending them around the house on a scavenger hunt to find clues that would eventually lead to their Christmas gift.  They collected a number of "clues" including a bundle of Disney movies, Mickey Mouse ears, and opened presents that contained Lightening McQueen and Cinderella sweatshirts.  It didn't take long for Luke to put together to clues that we were taking them to Disneyland!  They were both very excited ... and Mia loved her Cinderella sweatshirt so much that she wore it all night.

 

Another favorite gift came from Uncle James, Aunt Kate, Frederick, and Jacqueline.  The kids both received LeapPads.  As you can see below, they were hooked from the beginning.  Uncle Todd and Aunt Michelle set them up with some LeapPad games, and the Vitiellos took care of cases, accessories, and a few more games.  Lucky kids!

Luke was just darling this year and was SO excited to wrap up an old toy of his to give to Mia for Christmas.  This was completely his idea.  He wanted to give her his FisherPrice XL game because he felt like he didn't play much with it anymore and that she seemed to like it.  So, he wrapped it up and made her a card to go along with it.  Here he is presenting it to her.

After a long, exciting night everyone drifted off to sleep and Santa Claus came to visit!

Santa and The Christmas Spirit

We hosted what has become our annual Christmas party this past weekend.  Santa visited again this year, there was lots of delicious food, fun conversation, and guests donated gifts and gift cards to bring Christmas to a local family in need.

The kids answer the door for Santa

Santa sings and entertains



 Jack and Joey visit Santa

Luke and Owen sit with Santa

Luke and Mia place their requests:  A rocketship and a princess castle

 

Santa spends some time with the ladies

Baby Joey getting lots of snuggles

After the party, this is what transpired (an email from me to all of our amazing friends who donated):
Dear Family and Friends,
 
Happy New Year to each of you!  I apologize that it has taken me this long to reach out to you to thank you all for joining us in celebrating the Christmas season, and also for helping us bring Christmas to a very special family.  I can't thank you all enough - you gave US a tremendous gift.  We felt so incredibly blessed to be able to spend the Sunday before Christmas with the Hernandez family, showering them with the gifts that you provided.  So, thank you.  It was a really incredible experience for us to be there and see their faces as they received the gifts that we brought.
 
With your help, the three youngest children (8 months, 5 years, and 6 years) each opened two toys, two outfits, and a pair of shoes!  There has never been a 5 year old more excited to open a pair of shoes - her joy was tangible.  She put them on right away, and although they were a bit large, she insisted that they fit perfectly and that she was never taking them off.  True to her word, several hours later as she was napping, those shoes remained on!
 
The 11 year old boy also received two toys (sports equipment) and a number of gift cards to buy himself some clothes and shoes.  He was elated to see a gift card to Kohl's, as it is a store that he often wants to shop at, but is a luxury for his family.
 
The three adults each received enough gift cards to Target, Kohl's, Sears, and Marshalls to buy themselves new clothes and shoes.  They were also gifted with several grocery store cards.
 
We spent a couple of hours over lunch time with their sweet family.  We brought sandwiches, chips and drinks with us - the kids were so excited to have chocolate milk from a box that we left any extras with them and my dad later returned to their home and left a Costco case of chocolate milk boxes on their doorstep! :)  You honestly could not find a nicer, more grateful family.  Jovani, the father, is currently working full time while finishing up his general ed requirements and will soon transfer to SJSU.  Miriam also works full time and is planning to return to school as soon as her husband has finished.  Destinee & Stephanie (5 & 6 year olds) are in Kindergarten and 1st grade at Rocketship Academy.  Antonio (11 years old) is a 6th grader and is being mentored by Enrique from East Side Heroes (the non-profit that directed us to their family) with the hope that he will be able to attend Bellarmine as a high school student.
 
Here's a bit from Miriam after we left:
Thank you all so much.  We have never had such a nice, generous Christmas.  It is wonderful to know that people enjoy giving back, and we will definitely be paying it forward once we get settled.
 
....and a picture is attached.
 
Thank you all for your friendship and generosity.  Together we were able to bring tremendous Christmas joy to a family.
 
Happy 2013,
Julie

 

And ... the Christmas celebrations begin

We only were home from Cabo for one day before we dove right into celebrating the Christmas season.  It was actually really nice to have the holiday season to look forward to as we were ending such a wonderful week in paradise.

So, up first was the San Jose Country Club kids' Christmas party:

The season's first meeting with Santa - Mia was a bit unsure



 Luke, on the other hand, had no problem telling Santa what he wants this year:  "A rocketship"

(not sure exactly what his expectations are on that one ... we'll have to work on that)

Of course, there were fun little treats,

 and lots of sweets.



Daffy Dave entertained the kids after dinner and Santa.  As you can see, Luke and Mia thought he was just about the funniest guy ever!

I think that this one was all partied out by the end of the night - she didn't even notice that her headband was a bit out of place.

Thank you, Day and Paw, for treating us to such a fun evening again this year.  It was a great way to kick off the holidays!

Santa Visits

Santa visited our home again this year!  We had so much fun with him and Mrs. Claus last year that we decided that we simply must have them back.  In fact, we're hoping that they will be visiting us for the next several years to help celebrate the holidays.

Mrs. Claus and Mia having a chat

Pretty ladies:  Mrs. Claus, Day, and Mia

Mia feeling Santa's soft hat

Luke and Vidyut use the reindeer bells to make music

Listening to a story (while wearing antlers and a Rudolph nose)

Mia just loved that nose!

Luke was still a bit shy with Santa, but asked that he read his letter 

Trying to bribe the kids with candy canes for a cute photo ... it clearly wasn't working

Santa and the Ladies

We also asked guests to join us this year in donating gifts to "Kate's Crazy Cool Christmas," an organization that benefits children fighting cancer and their families.  We were able to send a big box of gifts off to little Kate herself.  Thank you to all of our family and friends who joined us, both in donations and celebration.  You are what really makes the season special.

Some things don't change

Well, we had high hopes for Luke's school Holiday Show this year.  As always, he was practicing all of the songs around the house for weeks leading up to the big night.  However, this year he kept telling us that he "might" sing.  For Luke that was a huge change from previous years when he announced with absolute certainty that he would NOT be singing.
We did make some progress this year:  he wore the hat that he made.  In previous years he has walked into this classroom where all of his fellow students were getting ready for the show, took one look at them, and looked at me as if to say, "They look absolutely ridiculous and there is no way that I'm putting any of that on my head."  The scenario played out very similarly this year ... until Luke's friend, Vidyut, made a very persuasive suggestion that Luke put on his hat "right away."  Luke conceded....

...but he made sure that not even one melodic note passed his lips during that performance.

However, Steve the ventriliquist and his silly puppet, Cornelius, absolutely made Luke's night

And Mia decided that, yet again, Santa gets a high-five (a very short-lived high-five - she was less than excited to actually BE on his lap)

Did Santa visit?

"Brother, what are we supposed to be looking for?"

Of COURSE he came!

For Luke: a marble run (that Mommy & Daddy have since sent back to the North Pole - too difficult and precise for us to put together, not to mention Luke. Santa's elves are working on a new gift for Luke), a lollipop, Chuggington trains, Kevin Henke books, and Thomas DVDs...oh, and the promise of a visit to the local roller skating rink since all Luke kept asking Santa for was roller skates (???).

For Mia: A ball pit (which Luke also loves), some "girly" cars, a caterpilllar toy, a new hat, and board books


They must have been very good kids this year!