Christmas Eve with the Reeves family

What a grand day we've had! At the Reeves house, Christmas is about so much more than presents & trees, lights & Santa, etc. It's about all those things, too, but more than anything, it's about spending time together, having fun, laughing, playing games...just being near each other. And celebrating the birth of Jesus.

This morning, we went to eat lunch (thank you for the gift card, Nikki!) at Olive Garden. Before we left, it was time for the annual Christmas Eve picture. I tried....I really tried. First I got this one.

Hmm...if it weren't for Larry's Elvis lip & the fact that my head was chopped off, it might've been ok. So I reset the timer & tried again & got this.

I swear....I told Larry I was going to kill him if it made a goofy face again. (oh, and there is that small issue of my head being chopped off!) Try again......

Much better! Everyone's head is actually in the picture. People are smiling. As a mom always does, I decided we needed to take a couple more just to make sure it turned out right. Ya never know...you might get a better shot the next time. Right?

....or maybe not.

:::sigh::: I give up. ha ha!

After our photography session, we went & had lunch and made a couple stops to look for a coat for me. I have a big ol' ugly thick thing for when it drops down to the low 20's. You know, the one that you wear more for function than looks. And I have a little sweatshirt-thickness jacket that I wear pretty much all year long. It functions well and does the job, but I need something nice for church, funerals, etc. I have a several years old fake leather coat that I love, but after years of hanging in my closet between winters, the (fake) leather is cracking and tearing and it's become necessary to replace it. We tried Goody's where I found several nice dressy coats, but they were either too small or they looked like maternity wear. (They just looked they way, they were not maternity coats.) So we ran to Walmart, where I got the picture in the previous post of the "nice smelling" truck. Walmart was a bust too. Lots of coats there, but none of them that fall into the "dressy" category. Oh well..for now I'll continue to wear the one I have when I need it. Sooner or later I'll find the perfect coat somewhere.

We came home & had a (very short) rest before we launched into the next project -- baking Jesus's birthday cake! The kids helped me measure & scoop & stir and then I let them decorate it.

The finished product (minus candles) and all the party goods for tomorrow morning

Tomorrow morning, we will celebrate Jesus's birthday with cake, noise makers, candles, milk....and the story of Jesus's birth straight from the Bible. After we celebrate & pray, we will move into the living room for presents.

Back to tonight.....

While the kids were decorating the cake, The Santa Clause was on TV. They watched it, we ate supper, and then we all watched the old classic Grinch movie together. When that was done, we had a rousing game of "Giggle & Spit".

Yes, you read that right. Giggle and Spit. :)

It's a game Savannah & I read about in a funny parenting book several years ago. The idea is that each player fills their mouth with a drink of water. The person who is "it" makes funny noises, tells jokes, acts goofy...whatever it takes to make the players spew the water from their mouths. And of course, when you know the goal is to spit water into a towel, the funny bone is a bit more ticklish than usual. (or at least it was tonight!) I'm not sure which one of the kids ended up winning, but suffice it to say, everyone giggled...and spit.

While the kids & I giggled & spit, Larry cleaned & shined every leather item he owns. I'm not sure what that has to do with Christmas, but it's what he wanted to do. Yeah, I know...he's a little odd. ha!

The kids are now in their sleeping bags & blankets in Samuel's room, enjoying one last viewing of the movie Elf (my favorite holiday movie!!!). When they finally doze off, I will throw out the gifts from Santa & hit the sack myself. See the next post to hear what Santa's bringing!