The presents were all wrapped and under the tree...
Santa came and ate his cookies, leaving gifts for everyone...
...and the kids waited patiently at the top of the stairs until Mom got the camera ready.
The iPad is great at distracting everyone, even on Christmas morning.
Ready to see what Santa brought!
Minecraft minifigures for Seth!
An Elsa art kit for Catherine!
An airplane and a "copter" for Aaron!
A remote control car for Aaron!
(Actually for Seth, but Aaron was sure it was his)
Grandpa & Grandma join the fun
Time for another Aaron tantrum!
Holidays and giving up naps don't always mix well.
Seth, Beth & Catherine distribute the gifts
Aaron's theme for Christmas this year: cars (specifically cement mixers)
Catherine's theme: Princesses
Seth's theme: Legos
(Not pictured, because I am an awesome parent)
We made him a Lego table to build his creations on.
Aaron opening his gift from us
A major hit with the two-and-under crowd!
We had a big surprise for the kids on Christmas morning. It was too big to wrap, so we assembled it outside and wrapped the patio doors instead. I was sure the kids would be intrigued and try to peek, but they just assumed it was decorative and left it alone.
We gave them a pretty big clue--we let Seth open the gift from Daniel & Wendy (a trampoline ladder). Even after some serious grilling as to why they would give us a trampoline ladder, Seth still wasn't catching on.
Finally, when everything was opened, we directed all the kids to the back door and informed them that there was one more present they needed to open. There was some initial confusion before they finally began "opening" the doors:
It's a TRAMPOLINE!
Adleigh was definitely the most excited!
The Bloods (and Adleigh's legs) with the trampoline
And, thanks once again to the AMAZINGLY warm December weather, we were able to spend the afternoon enjoying the trampoline (with the exception of Megan, who is in no rush to have a baby):
I was pretty proud of this gift--a poster I made for my dad:
I was not kidding about the nerdiness level in our family where Star Wars is concerned.
And, for Catherine, a dollhouse!
Jon spent pretty much all day assembling this beast.
Another wonderful Christmas for everyone!
