Our last Christmas in Ohio

every year my mom gets each of my children an ornament for our tree, and this year this is what they each opened. when we opened it i got that hard-to-swallow-don't-want-to-talk-or-i'll-cry kind of feeling. it really hit me that this is our last christmas in this house, in ohio, and with our good friends that we've made. i imagine i'll get that same feeling every year i hang this ornament on our tree.

we started at 8:30am on christmas morning. it was beautiful. everyone slept in. J & G were little lucky heads from the pile of presents sent to them from their grandparents, from santa, and us. J was the most excited about a remote control helicopter his papa got him on his last trip to china. he has played with it non-stop since. G loved her bee "pillow pet" and new camera. she's been taking pictures of EVERYTHING! good ole' super baby came running out and hopped right into his "cozy coupe" and stayed in it all day long! after a great morning we had a wonderful dinner with good friends. what a wonderful christmas. what a wonderful life.

Christmas Eve

this year for christmas eve we headed over to kirtland, OH to see hundreds of different nativities from all around the world. i snapped a few pictures of my favs. the picture above is one that i love. this truly depicts such a natural/real love for a baby. i love how joseph is kissing the sweet baby Jesus on his head. i love this. there were many nativities. some were large (as tall as J) and some were very, very small (we could only see the images through a magnifying glass). some were even made of unique materials like newspapers and pop cans. each and every one testified of the importance of the birth of a baby boy who came to save us all. each nativity shows how this one moment in time is so very important in every country, in every nation, in every heart.

matt told us to say "merry christmas" and then took the picture. i'm in mid sentence here...oh well, we got the picture! we also had a wonderful "Feliz Navidad" party with homemade tacos, tamales, and beans! yum! we are making this a new tradition, it was too fun and yummy. i learned how to make tamales from a wonderful, seasoned couple from church. this is one of the many wonderful things i've taken from ohio.

Holiday Goodies

we always have to have yummy chocolate around...thanks to my mom {i became addicted in the womb!} however, i think matt is more of a chocoholic than i am!

this year for our neighbors and friends we made cheese balls and i put them in these super cute boxes from hobby lobby {i should buy stock in that store!}

Cheese Ball:
1 block of cream cheese, softened
1 c shredded cheddar cheese
3 green onions, chopped
1/2 pack of Ranch Seasoning
mix with a mixer and roll into a ball
then roll in chopped walnuts

we like it with wheat thins

we like to make suckers too. this year we made cinnamon and strawberry.

Hats

one thing i've loved about ohio is hat weather.
i love making hats.
i love wearing hats.
i love to see my kids chubby cheeks
in hats.

how to make G's hat:
flower
puff stitch hat

how to make super baby's hat:
jenji hat

Countdown

i've always wanted some type of advent. i found this cute striped fabric at joann's and cut up some red fluffy sweaters from good will for the red short ones. my handy machine embroidered the numbers...and voila...
we are sticking around this year. we will miss our family, but it's just getting to hard to travel for the holidays. this gives us opportunities to establish some great holiday traditions of our own. in each of the stockings is a fun activity, coupon, service opportunity, or a treat. the kids really look forward to opening it in the morning!! this makes every day in december fun for us.

Gift Wrap

ever since we've been married, i always wrap in only red and white. i don't really know why i started it, but it's become a tradition. i really love red and white together. i just save the ribbons for next year. {i do, however, use green ribbon from time to time}. i love to wrap presents. my mom taught me the "right" way when i was young {with crisp, neat folds}, and i love to do it...as long as i get it done early! thanks mom!
p.s. hobby lobby has some FABULOUS red and white paper right now! i even got it for 50% off...love that place. so glad they built one close by.

Stockings

we had another stocking join our mantel this year. i just didn't get it made last year. it adds a nice touch and makes it more complete, don't ya think?

Halls Decked

i love the smell of a fresh tree.
i love having christmas music on.
i love watching my family decorate the tree.
i love eating waffle iron cookies while we decorate
{tradition stolen from my sis-in-law, kristi's, fam}
i love how the kids clump everything together.
i love watching our littlest one step on the stool to hang a candy cane.
i love red & grinchy green.
i love our sparkles.
i love our pom-pom garland.
i love the spirit christmas brings into my home.

Our Pumpkin Family

HAPPY HALLOWEEN
from our pumpkin family to yours
{moo-wa-hah-hah-hah}

Covered Bridges

matt and i have always wanted to take the ashtabula county bridge tour, but have never got around to it. well, matt's parents love road trips as much as we do, so we all hopped in the car (minus J b/c he was at school) for a day trip. we toured 10 different covered bridges, many of them dating back to the 1800's. the scenery was absolutely beautiful, and the company fabulous. please don't end fall...

this is the longest covered bridge in the nation, stretching 613 feet.

our little van drove through every one and matt got creative with the honks!

Amish Country

one of the many things we love about ohio is our trips to amish country, holmes county. holmes county is the most heavily populated amish county in the whole united states. it's so peaceful and there are so many wonderful shops and people. my brother-in-law was in town, so we took a trip down. it's just a little over an hour away, and i think we've been there 10 plus times. we're going back next week too for matt's birthday celebration. it was a beautiful day. fall is on it's way, hooray! enjoy a few pics!