It's CHRISTMAS....

Twas Christmas morning, we actually slept late

Until 6am at least (there was no debate)

When three little ones ran in our room with cheer

WAKE UP WAKE UP - Christmas is here! 

We rubbed our eyes put a smile on our face

Then all five paused for a moment of grace

Thank you, dear Jesus, for a year filled with love

For kindness and health and the gifts from above

Emmy lead us all in a prayer 

and in my opinion, that was Christmas, right there

Sweet words in her precious little voice

Asking us all to reflect and in Him rejoice

But alas, that Jolly St. Nick

 Had a few more items in his bag full of tricks

Two shiny bikes painted just as a requested

And a Playstation 4 made the day extra festive

But he wasn't done with surprises there was a little more

Some scratch offs, a robot and beef jerky was in store

Then a phone call was made to Gigi and Pops

"GET OVER HERE NOW AND DON'T MAKE ANY STOPS"

Breakfast was served, my favorite each year

Rolls and bacon make us all grin from ear to ear

Then the annual gift sorting began

All you type-As surely understand

We have order to our chaos, or so it would seem

We like to take our time to enjoy each and everything

Like fancy new socks that were chosen by Rad

And can only be FULLY appreciated by a super cool Dad 

While the presents were opened and everyone said thanks

I made sure to snap a few pictures of ME for the photo bank

These four humans are the only gifts I need

I can do without the wants, wears or read

As usual, my favorite part of the day

Were all the hugs given out along the way

A hug for a dress, a hug for a mask

A hug for that special gift that I was afraid to ask

A hug just because is the best hug of all

Better than a hug for a game or a doll

All the new stuff is awesome

That I won't deny

But the real joy is what matters 

And brings a tear to my eye

The moments in between that aren't posed or rehearsed

Are the moments I will always recall first

And the ones I don't capture behind some giant lens

Usually bring me the happiest grin

Each year we get older and much wiser, too

We stop and enjoy instead of having a "to do"

We hug and we laugh and if we're lucky enough

We recognize all the things that make up the "good stuff"

Like laughing with cousins and enjoying new toys

And filling the streets with a joyful noise

All the packages piled under that tree

Aren't the only gifts for you and for me

It's not the ribbons or sparkly bows

That make a difference, that much we know

It's time spent with family and our wonderful friends

That fill the day with joy from beginning to end

May your Christmas be merry and your New Year be bright

And may 2019 be filled with blessings you count each and every night!!

Framily traditions...

What started off as a way to add less to our to do list (and toy pile) has easily become a day that I look forward to most each year. We've gone from juggling car seats and diapers to managing six extremely eager bosses helpers. 

Each year we fill our buggies with the same essentials from the list of needs but our conversations grow in depth and meaning. The kids have filled backpacks stuffed with food that some of their friends take home on the weekends. While they don't know what it feels like to wonder about our next meal, there is a very real possibility that they know someone that does. 

We load up our car and head to the Brazos Center to make our donation to the annual Food For Families Food Drive. They obviously compete to see who can lift the heaviest bags and fill the cart the fastest. And I try to etch each and every second of these moments into memory.

I hope I never take these moments for granted. I hope that as they continue to grow older and time gets shorter and lives get busier that we still find the time to do what counts. I hope that the memory of this tradition matters more than the memories of what Santa leaves.

And I hope that when they have kids of their own, they continue the tradition of giving back and paying it forward. 

Something new...

I love traditions. I love the routine. The memories. The easiness. The sentimentality. The significance. I love the stories behind them that get told over and over again and the way they can change over the years. 

But there is also something to be said for trying something new especially when it's your kid's idea (and only major "bucket list" item of the season.)

Emersyn decided that she wanted to make Christmas cookies - REAL ones - not the break and bake kind. So I got my friend, Jenn, famous sugar cookie recipe, made some dough, set up the kitchen and let them go to work... 

I'm actually surprised with how well they turned out. The dough is DELICIOUS on it's own, but add in all that sweetness from a teeny impromptu neighborhood cookie decorating party and they were over the top, amazing!

"Everyone put your hand in there..."

#basic #stillloveit

I've come to discover that my favorite moments are the ones that I don't have pictures of... which just means I enjoyed the memory as it happened instead of after the fact. We let the kids pick the color of icing to make and then let them loose with decorating.  And y'all... I LOVE them... every single sugar overloaded cookie was just perfect!

So here's to loving the old while not being afraid to try something new!

Kings of Christmas...

Twas EARLY Christmas morning

(Like FIVE FORTY FIVE)

When tiny little voices made our room come alive!

Mommy! Daddy! Santa was HERE!!!

You could feel their grins spread from ear to ear

The cuteness really was too much to handle when Emmy exclaimed

"I think he brought us Hanukkah candles!!"

We forced them to lay still in our beds

Until I could get the energy to literally raise my head

Finally we let them run to see

All of the goodies left under the tree

Wouldn't you know even after checking that list twice

These three kids ended up on the one labeled "nice"

A giant nerf gun and a magic wand made by elves

She didn't waste any time casting some spells

Even the cats were granted their secret wish

And those "candles" turned out to be giant pick-up sticks

We paused for some breakfast - my favorite each year

Because cinnamon rolls and bacon scream "holiday cheer"

Then we sorted those gifts and each took our place

With happiness in our heart and a smile on our face

The best gifts are the ones that don't come from a store

Proving that Christmas is about so much more

Than presents and trinkets and all of the THINGS

It's about family and togetherness and the love Jesus brings

Sure new lipstick is a ton of FUN...

but the best part of the day is hugs for everyone!

New dolls are awesome art supplies, too...

but nothing compares to time with your crew!

We soaked up each moment we loved all the frills... 

(they especially loved those crisp dollar bills!)

Movies and clothes and books! Oh my!

Dolls and an Atari were a wonderful surprise!

Each gift brought love that filled up our sweet space

And nothing compares to joy on their  face!

Merry Christmas from us to each one of you...

and blessings in the New Year, too!

Christmas Countdown (3, 2, 1)...

We rounded out our Christmas Countdown with some of our favorite things...

Only 3 days until Christmas - School's Done - Kid's choice for tons of fun!

The kids had school alllll the way until the 22nd so we started off the weekend before Christmas was a few class parties! These classes know how to party - cookies, tacos, tamales, donuts, and all the sugary drinks you can imagine! But the sweetest things there that day were definitely the #Wee3Kings

And if we hadn't partied enough, Emmy headed over to a friend's house after school for a cookie decorating party and the rest of us headed across the street from THAT house to decorate some cookies of our own!

 The amount of sprinkles on that counter and floor far out numbered the amount that made it onto the cookies. 

Their kids choice item was a sushi picnic with one of their favorite movies. By the time I snapped this picture and returned to make myself a plate more than half of those rolls were gone. 

The night ended with just us girls in front of the fire while Radley went out for laser tag with a buddy from class. 

The perfect ending to a pretty near perfect day!

Only 2 days until Christmas - Pick your favorite movie, grab your Christmas jammies, let's sleep under the tree as a King family!

Favorite night of the season each and every year!

Only 1 day until Christmas - Let's bake some cookies for Santa!

Since Christmas Eve fell on a Sunday, we had Ryan home allllllll day long as an added treat to the already awesome day!

And MaMaw even got to join in the fun!

After all that cookie baking we got down to the real business of making meatballs!

After a day full of cooking and baking, they were more than ready for the big guy to come for a visit! 

Stay tuned...