Christmas 2011

It cannot be that time already, but sadly it is....the holiday hustle and bustle has come & gone and the new year is donning!
Christmas 2011 was so much fun for these Holub kids! No doubt the days were full & sleep was lacking, but this year I would say was the very best yet for our kiddo's.
Thursday the 22nd we Celebrated Brad's 35th Birthday! The weekend before some good friends & I had a little plan up our sleeve. Brad's birthday being so close to Christmas often means that everyone gets caught up in the Holiday craze and his Birthday isn't as well noted as it should be. Well this year we changed that! With the help of cousin Cassie coming to watch the kids & some great friends we pulled this off! Thursday evening Brad was saying he couldn't remember the last time him & I had a night out for dinner with just us. We have had nights out but not just a nice dinner out, just us, so I told him I had a surprise and I couldn't keep it in any longer, that Friday night I had lined up a sitter and we were having an early birthday dinner out, just us. His face lit up and his face brimmed with a big smile, he was so much looking forward to that. But there was more in store that he didn't know about.....

Friday came and we went to work. After work he got ready & I came home and got ready. My car was parked in the street, silly Brad didn't even notice, my dome light turned off and just as Cassie arrived so did a few friends..... yet they quietly snuck into my car & waited for us to head out of the house. I was laughing, Cassie was laughing & peeking out the window as we left because she knew what was going on & our friends in the car were cracking up! We headed out to the car, got in and it was silent for about 3 seconds when all of a sudden everyone yells, 'SURPRISE'! The look on Brad's face was priceless & to say he was shocked is a bit of an understatement!!!!! He was so excited & so was I that we pulled this one off and he had absolutely NO idea! Gotcha honey! Thank you Eddins' & Hahn's! We headed off on a road trip with a full cooler & headed south to Iowa City to Iowa River Power. Brad & I have visited there once a year for the past 10 years and this year I decided it would be for his birthday celebration. We had a fantastic evening, lots of laughs, great company & my husband felt very special by the time the evening was over.

Happy Birthday Honey!~

Thursday the 22nd on his actual Birthday my Mom, Sister & Brother arrived here from PA for the Holiday. We were so excited to have them come and stay for Christmas. We had a great night & Dylan and I made a really yummy cake for Brad! Perfect relaxing evening before a busy holiday weekend.

Friday the 23rd we headed off early afternoon on a road trip to my Dad's in Des Moines. We had Chase with us in the back seat with the kids & a packed car! My aunt & uncle & cousin Kim and her family were also along for the journey. We were very much looking forward to a very relaxing evening with great conversation, an easy meal & Christmas spirit. While a few minor details were changed it was a decent night and it was great to see my Dad and have family time. Some neighbors up the street put on a fantastic light display perfectly matched to Christmas music. So after dinner we piled into a couple of cars & drove up to witness the display. It was pretty crazy to be outside, walking thru green grass &  listening to Christmas music not totally freezing our tails off! Got us thinking, were we really even in Iowa?! Yes we were, just not a white Christmas this 2011.

 My Aunt is just so crafty! Aren't these little guys so cute...with a little dose of chocolate heaven inside!

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The next morning we awoke early & headed home for our traditional Christmas Eve celebration. On the way home the boys were a little bit tired from a full evening the night before so much of the car ride looked like this....... Hilarious!!!!

About half way home Dylan started really complaining about an earache...this is way out of the ordinary for Dylan and by the time we arrived home he was just sobbing with big alligator tears. So immediately I called the on-call doc and put some ear drops in, thankfully we already had a prescription. In the mean time him & I fell asleep in my bed & awoke 3 hours later, which was great, only to find we were about 45 minutes from missing Christmas Mass. I was very sad about this, but Dylan was still not feeling great and getting him feeling better quick was our top priority. We got cleaned up and proceeded to call the doctor again as I still hadn't heard back, and headed to our traditional after Christmas Eve mass dinner at the Olive Garden! That certainly put a smile on Dylan's face! The doctor called back we got a prescritpion for Dylan & Mom and Chase joined us for a very yummy dinner!

After dinner we headed over to Brad's Parents for our Christmas celebration with them. Well Mr. Dylan & Miss Danielle must have been on the 'good' list this year because we walked in to presents galore! We finally had Danielle's special tomato chair and we brought it along so she could sit and open her own presents this year. We got all cozied in, put Danielle in her chair and that little girl lit up the room! Everyone had big huge smiles on their faces watching her, Danielle was soaking in every single minute of the magic of Christmas & her spirit was very contagious! These kids were SO MUCH FUN to watch!

 Bow on the head is a Christmas Eve family tradition with the Holubs! Danielle was the first one with a bow!

 Princess jewelry for our little princess Danielle, how fitting!

 Personalized year calendar from the grandchildren is an annual gift!

 Jo had these pj's that each of her boys had worn. She asked me prior to Christmas if she washed them up, if Dylan would want to wear them home on Christmas Eve instead of his pj's that we usually take. The jammies were in surprisingly good shape after 30 years. The size was 5t which is his current size, but after getting them on they proved that the bottoms were a wee bit stretched out! After a good laugh the Scooby Doo pj's were put away until next year!

(The weekend before Christmas we celebrated with Tony since he wasn't able to make it on Christmas Eve, the kids must have been on his good list too because they got some super fun gifts!)

Danielle would get her hands up on each present and tare down with all her might to get each and every one open. She was talking non-stop, cooing & singing, it was so magical that I can't even explain! Grandpa Holub kept saying how wonderful she looked and how much fun she was having, Nick & Sarah agreed & Grandma was smiling ear to ear & kept feeding the kids more presents. We had a car FULL on the way home! Definitely the best Christmas ever with Brad's family & the kids had the time of their life!!! I think they may have been a little bit spoiled too ;-)        The packed car ride home!

We arrived home just after 11 and snuggled the kids in their beds so they could nod off to sleep all in full anticipation of Santa arriving while they were nestled in their beds. I still had all of my gift wrapping to do and so did my Mom, so Chase & Brad watched Christmas Vacation while us girls giggled till the wee hours of the morning wrapping away in the kitchen. I would torture my sister wrapping her gifts right in front of her and she was going crazy not being able to see in each box. Christmas spirit I tell ya!

Christmas morning about 7, Dylan comes running into our room & was so anxious to see if Santa came that he actually asked us if he could go look! We were so shocked that he didn't just run to the living room on his own, but polite little guy asked first! Soon Grammy was awake and came in to our room & we all made our way to the living room. First Dylan spotted that Santa drank all of his milk and ate most of his cookies! He also left Dylan a little letter on the back of the letter that Dylan wrote to Santa. Then in the living room we spotted full stockings & toys, oh more toys & Dylan squealed with delight!

The morning was spent at home, I made homemade cinnamon rolls & Muffins. We cranked up the Christmas music & sang and laughed and opened gifts with my Mom, Chase & Britni. It was very relaxed, pj's were thankfully allowed and we all did what Christmas is all about, enjoyed the precious moments with our family.

 My little sis made each of these handmade sayings, LOVE them!! Awesome job & idea Britni!

 More jewels for little peanut! Try taking this purse out of her hands if you've never heard her cry, taking that away sure brings the tears! Every girls pride and joy, a new purse!!

 Loving every minute of giving Barbie a new 'do'!

 Merry Christmas 2011!

 The beginning of family portraits! HA!

Christmas afternoon we headed to Prairieburg to Grandma Holubs house. There is no other moment better than walking into a packed Holub home, full with lots of Grandma's love on Christmas day! We packed in, the sunshine was beaming thru the windows & we all feasted on Grandma's traditional Christmas meal, homemade everything including dumplins & kraut, yum! We had a fantastic afternoon with our Holub family. It was such a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky, the sun was warming our soul. Christmas had come up so fast this year....I thought I was ready, then I questioned my readiness.....but that feeling that I get on Christmas day surrounded by my husband & children and extended family around us, it is magical & I along with my husband were soaking in every ...single ....minute of it!

Christmas evening I cooked a homemade feast at home for my PA family. Football was on the basement TV for the guys, the kids, my Mom, sister & I huddled up on the couch to watch the Polar Express. Yawwwwn, our Christmas 2011 was slowly winding down. We had a fantastic time this year with our families. It was so much fun having my PA family here for just over a week. I love the full house, the preparing of meals & making beds for visitors, there is nothing better than a full home filled with love for the Christmas holiday. As my family made their trek back home this past Thursday evening a part of my heart left with them.

Our tree is now shredding, it seems as tho Toys R Us and Santa's workshop threw up in our living room, only the Orphan Sugar Cookies are left in the bottom of the container, and on Wednesday we were our Recyclers nightmare......and this Christmas 2011 is now in our blogging book.

Our family in heaven, our dear first born little boy Dalton, how we miss you so. We know Santa brings you magic every year & your memory brings magic to our hearts. 

 Oh how the time quickly passes us by yet taking a moment to stop & enjoy the beauty and magic around us is a must. This Christmas was a ton of fun with our children, while we are sad to see it go, we are very much looking forward to a New Year with new beginnings! ~

Tis the Season!

Tis the Season for memories being made. This weekend was spent beginning a few of what we hope will become annual Holiday traditions!We had a lot of fun bringing out the domesticated size of Brad and I.
So a day dedicated to Crafts & Cookies is what we had in store, I was looking forward to this ALL week long! We told Dylan on Thursday what fun we had in store and for 2 whole days he asked and begged for Craft & Cookie time!
I have fond memories as a child making handmade gifts for my parents and grandparents. Whether it was at school or with a family member or babysitter, every single year a member of my family got something homemade from me. So much thought was put into these gifts and it is fun looking back now at the ones that my parents saved! For the past few months, since the weather has turned chilly, almost every Sunday we have done some sort of craft in the afternoons. Finger painting, painting pictures with watercolors, coloring, coloring by number, cut and paste, we have had fun doing all of these things the past several months. Today's project was handmade Christmas ornaments! Stockings & Christmas tree's with the kids current pictures on them. The Grandparents, Great Grandparents & Aunt's & Uncles are sure to love these.....hopefully they don't check this posting before Christmas!

Next up, baking cookies!! Who doesn't love the taste of a freshly baked cookie, nice and warm right out of the oven?! Ahhh, YUM! We baked homemade Chocolate Chip and Sugar Cookies today, and they were delicious! Dylan was not afraid to dig in and help Mom, it sure was a fun day in the kitchen!

I love this peeking into the oven watching them 'grow' as he says! Tested his time waiting skills today, waiting for the dough to harden, waiting for the cookies to bake and then waiting for them to cool so we could frost!
But my oh my, are they tasty! You be the judge..... :)

Sunday Family Funday is in the books! Already looking forward to Crafts & Cookies next year!~

It's Beginning....

*It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas* The pure magic of the season is upon us. Where every song on the radio and every twinkle from the lights around bring tears to my eyes. I am a sap I get very caught up in the magic of the season, and there is no one better to share it with than my husband and kids!
We began the magic of the season decorating the house about a week before Thanksgiving. Dylan is very much into Christmas this year and so far mostly the decor. He LOVES the lights and as soon as he spotted some on our drive here and there, well he wanted ours up too! I love the twinkling of the lights so I was more than happy to bring them out a little early. We put white lights on the deck and garland around the sliding glass door going out to the deck and strung garland in the living room around the TV and of course the stockings are hung to!
Last Friday night we bundled up and ventured to Christmas in the Park in downtown Marion. The park was filled with families and kids all excited to share in the joy of the season. We saw the reindeer and spotted Santa and Mrs. Claus in their little cabin. So we quick got in line to see Santa! We witnessed the Peace Tree lighting and the kids loved seeing the big 'ta-da' moment when the lights went on!

There were carolers over by the Train and hot chocolate in the gazebo and the Shriners had their stand with yummy Kettle Corn, there were even carriage rides, it was a fun filled family event!

 The line to see Santa and Mrs. Claus was LONG, but Dylan really wanted to see Santa so we hopped right in and waited. The families in front of us and behind us, both had a boy and a girl our kiddo's ages. We waited and waited and the kids took turns sitting in the stroller and cuddling under the blankets. I checked the temp on my phone and yep it was a balmy 21 degrees, BURR! But we weathered thru, while watching parents leave with kids in tears because they were so cold. We were bundled and kept checking the kids and they were warm to the touch. As the line curved up 7th ave and we arrived there Dylan started saying he was cold. But ah, we were SO close to Santa, within probably 20 minutes away from our turn. So we waited and waited and eyed the super fun toy store across the street and had our game planned out of how this Santa thing was going to go down. We huddled Dylan in the stroller yet again with the blankets and just as we were about 7 kids away from seeing Santa, (YES I counted!) I looked down and Dylan, well he was fast asleep! AHHHH! I took him out of the stroller and tried to stand him up, 'Dylan Dylan its just about your turn to see Santa', 'DYYYLLAAN' I was trying to get him to stand up, nope nothing, he nearly fell right over the kid was zonked OUT! I looked at Brad and he looked at me, we both admitted we were cold, many parents with crying, cold kids had bailed out of line long ago and at this point and just as we were about to the door to see the big old man and mrs. in red, we too bailed out with a sleeping child and one curled into her daddy's neck trying to stay warm. This point had been one and a half hours later, our turn was nearly up to see Santa and we bailed! Now thinking, I wish we would have stayed in line just thru those last few kids, put Danielle on Santa's lap and took a picture of a sleeping Dylan with Santa in the stroller. Oh well, there's always next year. This was one trip to see Santa for the memory books!

 This is just how close we were!! And one very tired little boy!

We headed for the car, turned the heat on high and headed out to get our Christmas tree! We went for another real tree this year but because the weather forecast for the weekend was nothing but rain, we opted for one that was already cut down. It was nearly 8 foot tall, opps! I tend to think they look smaller in person than they really are, so needless to say we had to do some cutting off the bottom, it was cut down to our size and it came home with us that night! The next morning the living room was cleared, the tree had a home, the lights were strung and the ornaments were hung! There is nothing more magical than sitting all cozied up and staring at a beautiful twinkling Christmas tree! It just never gets old!

Another Holiday favorite for us is count down the days of Christmas with the Advent Calendar! This year we have 2 calendars, one more traditional where we move the candy cane to each date pocket until we get to Christmas and the other is I think Dylan's favorite this year....behind each date door is a piece of chocolate! YUM! He is very giddy every single morning to rush to the calendar, search thru the picture for the days correct date number and quickly peel back the door holding that taste of delicious! And a punishment if he has been naughty, well the chocolate has to wait until after school! 6 days down and that has only happened 1 time, trust me I bet the last time too because there were big alligator tears when he had to wait 10 hours to taste the delicious today ;-)

Licking his lips because he can already taste the delicious! I love him so!

 Ahh yes, the prize behind the door!

We love the magic the season brings. The times spent with family and friends. The memories that are made. The goodies we taste. So much fun to be had and special times ahead this Holiday Season!