Christmas Day at Nonnie and “Bubba’s” house…Woodham Christmas
Archive for December, 2008
Christmas morning 2008…
Yes, it was early!
So the outfit that Santa brought her was obviously not enough. She had to embellish it a wee bit…the McCanless touch!
…and the playroom was getting smaller by the minute!
What a mess!
Getting ready for Santa!!
McCanless dumped her reindeer food right in the front walk so the reindeer wouldn’t miss our house! Honestly, I think they had a bit of trouble getting it all up!
Elfie hid out in Santa’s mug until the big man arrived!
Santa loved the jumbo gingerbread cookies we decorated for him! He ate three as he worked to assemble the girls’ toys!
Christmas Eve at PaPa and BB’s house…Pennington Chrismtas
After church, we headed over to PaPa and BB’s house. This year both nearing the terrible two’s, Reese and Mary Clare were into EVERYTHING and running EVERYWHERE, especially up the stairs! We had a great time, even when all three cousins had their flutes going strong! After dinner and a bit of more craziness, we loaded into the limo (the BPA funeral home limo) for a tour of Christmas lights, always a highlight on Christmas Eve!
Reese wanted that bow out of Mary Clare’s hair!
Friends…
Every year, I string our Christmas cards onto twine and hang them on our mantle. Every year, as I watch the garland grow, I am more and more thankful for all of our wonderful friends and family…. Yet another reminder of how very blessed we are!
Christmas Eve at St. Bartholomew’s
Along with Midnight Mass, our church always has a beautiful Christmas Eve Children’s service earlier in the evening. For the past several years, we have not attend Midnight Mass (due to Santa’s visit), but the children’s service has become such a special part of our Christmas Eve. This year, we all participated in the nativity!
Runaway Angel!
Annabelle’s bow…
A dear friend and neighbor of ours, Annabelle, gave us this little girl’s hair bow several years ago, a hand-me-down that has been a beautiful companion to many precious Christmas dresses and childhood memories for years. As I pulled it out this Christmas, possibly for Mary Clare, it immediately reminded me of another sweet Annabelle that has touched our lives forever. A heart sister of Mary Clare’s, and now angel, that I have thought of so often this Christmas season. I decided not to use the bow for Mary Clare, but to honor our sweet baby friend, Annabelle, who was rarely without a big beautiful bow just like this one. I placed it near the top of our Christmas tree and thought of her daily as I admired it. This bow ornament will forever adorn our beautiful Christmas trees in honor of our even more beautiful heart baby, Annabelle. We are so thankful for her life.
Say, “Princess!”
Pop came to visit us on Tuesday and brought the first round of Christmas with him! McCanless got a digital Princess camera and we’ve all had so much fun with it! Just had to share these photos from my budding photographer! (and a few her mommy took, too!)
My Princess was helping me cook spaghetti tonight.
We told Daddy that he would be kissing a princess!
Emmie is such a good sport! She endures “hair-dos and bows, tea parties, and will even sit quietly while strapped into a baby stroller.
Once McCanless got the hang of it, she was taking pictures of EVERYBODY!
McCanless posed me for this…like a princess, she said!
Tidbits…
I’ve had so little time lately, I’ve neglected our blog at bit. Between our own grown up dances, parties and gatherings, our children’s Christmas programs, parties and gatherings, and keeping up with our so originally named,Elf on a Shelf, Elfie, we’ve been quite busy! (McCanless named her elf with Mimi when she was three. I asked her if she would consider changing his name to “J Crew” but she refuses, so Elfie it is…) Elfie has been found in any place imaginable in our house and usually has to hide out of reach of Mary Clare! He isn’t as mischievous as other Hartsville elves, so we’ve heard, and has only made one mess in our kitchen when he got into some Christmas cookies one night. We’ve had fun with Elfie this year!
Last year, McCanless had so many questions regarding her elf, the North Pole and everything Santa! I grew very nervous, as she was only three and very skeptical about the whole thing. Nevertheless, we emphasized the true meaning of Christmas and tried to just use magic to explain everything else. This year, she certainly knows that Santa has helpers and she doesn’t ask as many questions. (We probably ruined her outlook when she was two and Mel “helped” Santa by playing the part one night in town. I thought we got away with it until we were leaving and she turned and said, “Bye-bye Da Da!”) It also probably doesn’t help that Mr. Chip, who “plays” Santa for many functions in Hartsville is also a member of our church and sings in the choir. We see him every Sunday and watch his beard grow and turn snow white beginning in October in preparation for the Christmas Season.
This year, McCanless will run up to any of Santa’s “helpers” and explain that she knows he is just a helper. She also tells him to relay her messages. It has been so much fun to see her excitement grow as Christmas approaches. We received a response from their letters to Santa a few days ago, and I thought McCanless would burst with excitement! Mary Clare is still not a Santa fan. Today, we had Lunch with Santa at the Country Club with my family. Mary Clare cried the entire time she saw Santa, and wouldn’t even sit near him for a photo. McCanless, on the other hand, wouldn’t leave Santa alone. We had to make her move so other children could chat with him. I’m afraid of what her list consists of now! She was with him for quite a while.
In other news, Mel has begun to update his blog once again. He gives his take on life, our girls and Hartsville. If you know Mel, he can be quite the character, which makes for pretty interesting reading. Check it out. www.melpennington.com
Life is great in our little corner of the world. We couldn’t ask for more.