Decorating for Christmas

One of my favorite things to do at Christmas is put up decorations!  This year Jacob has really started to "understand" Christmas and notice all the lights, ornaments, and espeically Santa.  ;)

What a precious smile while hanging ornaments!

Daddy made homemade hot chocolate for us to have a decorating break.  It was yummy!

Of course we have MORE than one tree in the house!!!!

This is the real tree after it's all decorated!  Yay!

Our stockings are hung by the chimney with care, LOTS of it!  I finally made our stockings!  I've had the material and supplies for over 2 years but just got around to putting them together.  I'm pretty proud of how they turned out.  I was able to embroider our names and also the snowflakes on mine, the stars on Jacob's, and the decorations on Jeff's.

We finished the tree in the evening, so the next day it was time to put the lights on the house!  Jacob wanted to help Daddy with the lights.  Mostly he just wanted to be on the ladder.  :)

Jacob was checking all the sticks in the yard while we were putting lights on the house.

This is what Jacob's hair looked like when I pulled the hat off!  Ha!

More sticks!

Once it was dark I grabbed a picture of our lights!  So pretty!

 Merry Christmas!!

Thanksmas

It's been over two weeks since we've posted anything, but it's not because we haven't been doing anything...we've actually been really busy!  We just returned from a week of family time in California, and what a good time it was!!!  We celebrated Thanksgiving, and had an early Christmas, with Papa and G-Jo.  We called it Thanksmas!  Here's the pictures from our time in what Jacob calls,  "Cal-i-for-na!"

G-Jo and Jacob reading a book.  One of his favorite things to do!

Sidewalk chalk is so fun!

Papa and Jacob decorating the Christmas tree with "or-ments up here"

A quick picture...Smile!

The tree is complete!

Jacob has learned how to do a summersault and this is his smile after he complete's one...he's showing off for Papa and G-Jo. 

Picture time with Papa and G-Jo.

Opening gifts...Cars 2 was a BIG hit!

The theme was all things Lightning McQueen, so here's a picture of Jacob looking at his new pillowcase!

Watching Cars 2.  With a light up McQueen lamp and new Cars 2 Busy Book.

Making cut out Rice Crispie Treats!  Yum!

Alisa came over for a visit!  Friends!

Can't remember why we were doing this, but we're saying "Aghhhhhh" and I thought it was funny!

Thanksgiving morning, getting ready to head to church to meet with GUMBO.  The group, GUMBO, gets together weekly to feed the homeless in Riverside, mostly around the building, and they made sure to deliver meals on Thanksgiving day too!

Jacob on the swings at church before we deliver food.

The GUMBO group.

The Thanksgiving table all set up. 

The cousins are reading with Jacob...How sweet!

Papa and Jacob.

Jacob loved being in "Papa's Truck" and going "over the bumps."  Every time he would feel the truck going over he would yell out, "whoa bump" and laugh!

Of course, we had to go to the park and swing and slide...

...and play the instruments at the park...

...and watch the boy play basketball...

Another BIG hit was the cuckoo clock.  Jacob loved to wait for it to cuckoo, and he would say, "almost time" and "first 4 times, then one time."  Meaning that it would cuckoo the number of hours and then one time on the half hour.  Ha!

Saturday after Thanksgiving, we went to a Train Museum/Park.  Here we are at the entrance. Fun!







Jacob at the entrance looking at the rails of the train tracks.





Here we go!

There was an area of the park where the children could push buttons to make the various train signals light up or move.  It was fun to watch Jacob very intently push the buttons and observe how they worked.  He's such a thinker!





A family shot on the caboose!



All smiles!

Daddy and Jacob looking out the top window of the caboose!

Walking on the tracks of Grizzly Flats Railroad tracks...

These trains were owned by The Kimballs, one of Disney's main animation guys.  These were the trains that gave Disney the idea for Disneyland!

After the Train park, we headed over to Tom's Farms.  In this picture we are waiting for the carousel...  This place is special because it's where Papa took Jacob before he was born.  What was once an emotional and sorrowful carousel ride, was made perfect, when 3 years later Jacob could ride it for himself.  Praise be to God!

Yay!

(This is the picture from three years ago, Papa is with Jacob's cousin, Audrey, and I am 5 months pregnant, just a few weeks after Jacob's CDH diagnosis)

On the Train at Tom's Farms.

It took us a little while to find this covered wagon because it was in a different place than when we took the picture three years ago...

 



(this is the picture from 3 years ago...)

  

After the carousel and train ride, Jacob rode a pony named Mr. Ed.  He did so good all by himself!

One of the last days we were there, we went to the Science Center.  Here, Jacob is learning about the effects of gravity.  Ha!

Of course the boys had to do the flight simulator...

Papa and G-Jo showing Jacob the dinosaur.



Saying, "cheese" with the dinosaur bones. 



California proved to be tons of FUN!