Happy Holiday Happenings

Here it is, December 28th. Another Christmas has already come and gone! And just think, next Christmas will be SO DIFFERENT from any other Christmas we've had together. Wow......Connor will be about 9 months old, so where he might not be all into Santa yet, he will still be aware of the chaos known as Christmas. How exciting! :) Here is a recap of our Happy Holiday Happenings:

December 20th was our annual Christmas party, and OH what a success it was. We collected SO MANY items for KARMA, the local clothes closet benefiting children from birth to 5 years. It was an amazing act of selflessness, and we are blessed to have such generous friends. Thanks to all of you! Below are some pictures of the donations we collected:

Here is a picture of the donation box the morning after the party

We laid it all out and sorted it into categories

All packed up and ready to go!

After we dropped it off with the president of the Western Arkansas Childcare Provider's Association, she separated the donations into 7 bags and sent them to Lincoln, Quality, Head Start, Sandbox, Adrian's Creative School, Bost and Children's Paradise. Thanks again to all our friends and family, you are all Angels.

December 24th, Christmas Eve, is always spent at the Birch household. We had quite a crowd this year; Mom, Dad, Justin, me, Drew, Melissa, Grandmother, Uncle Bob, Trish, Brent, Uncle Steve, and Clare....oh, and Melissa's new Jack Russell Terrier, Layla. Whew! Ever since I was little, we've always had a tradition of opening our presents on Christmas Eve night. It's a lot of fun, but a little chaotic at times. 12 people in one room (well sorta'....we have to use the entry way as an extension to the living room); presents making their way from under the tree to their rightful owners; wrapping paper, tissue, and bows flying through the air; people holding up gifts asking, "who is this one from?".....it's insane over there! But when it's all said and done, it's always a blessing to know that we have family, friends, food, and a warm place to celebrate Christmas. Mom and Dad got us a great gift this year; a digital HD Camcorder! It is definitely something that will be coming in handy in the very near future. We have 3 months to learn how to use it....hopefully that will be a sufficient amount of time. :)

We have had a running joke in our family since the days that Drew attended Euper Lane Elementary. (He is now 20, so that's been quite a while). I can't remember the whole story, but he came home one day talking about some kid in class with "School Cheese" on his shirt (ya' know, the kind of saucy, nacho cheese that gets under your fingernails and all over your clothes?) I am not sure why at the time we found the term "School Cheese" so hilarious....we just did. So from that point on, our family has made random references to "School Cheese." Dad and I decided that we would get Drew some "School Cheese" for Christmas as a gag gift. I went to the store and bought the industrial sized can of Jalapeno Nacho Cheese, used my Microsoft Word Art skills and created a new label to put over the word "Jalapeno." The end result was priceless. (By the way, this is just one of those "you had to be there" moments,so if you aren't laughing like I am, I totally understand.)

December 25th, Christmas Day, was spent at the Scarlet household this year. We stuffed our faces FULL of turkey, beef roast, pork roast, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, stewed tomatoes and green beans, and some of that cranberry sauce from a can (I ate a TON of cranberry sauce, that stuff is GOOD!). After we were good and miserable, it was time to open presents! I came out of the kitchen and on the dining room table was my first gift: Christmas Birdhouse! LOL!! Terry, Justin's dad, has been making bird houses. It's his latest hobby. Last time we were over there, I told him he needed to make a Christmas birdhouse, equipped with decorations and all! Well, sure enough, he did, and now I am the proud owner of this Griswold style bird mansion! And, NO, you CAN'T have it! :)

Justin handmade Karen a "Go Hogs Go" sign to hang in Baby Connor's room at her house. She also got a Garmin navigation system, but by the looks on her face, you can definitely tell which gift was her favorite. I love it :)

After Terry and I opened our presents, it was time for Justin to go on the Christmas Present Hunt of a lifetime! Karen had one gift for him under the tree, and in it was a pair of headlight guards for the jeep, and a set of rules for the rest of the game :) He had 8 presents hidden in various places in the house, and when he found one, he had to bring it back to the living room to open it. He said this was one of the most fun Christmas' ever. Here are some pics:

After leaving the Scarlet's, we went back to my parent's house to get our stockings! I have always loved stocking stuffers. This time around, it was only immediate family, and mom was in her PJ's. Can't say I blame her...I would have put mine on if I would have known that was the dress code! Mom made lasagna, but we were both so full from lunch, that we had to take ours home. We enjoyed Christmas with our loved ones, and we can't wait to celebrate next year with our little extension to the family!

December 26th, the day after Christmas, my friends and I had a girls lunch at Cheddar's. We exchanged gifts and went shopping afterwards. I don't get out much with the girls, so this was a TON of fun!! Thanks to Stephanie for putting it all together :) Great idea!! We have decided to make a yearly tradition of it. Here are a few pics:

Clockwise: Stephanie, me, Crystal, and Stacey

Crystal LOVES her Hogs!

Stacey won't forget her name anymore when she's putting on her make-up!

This bag will definitely come in Handy! Thanks, Steph!

Nope, that's not cleavage. Kind of looks like it at first glance though.....

Steph will be warm and fuzzy in her new cashmere wrap from Crystal!

Steph and I think Stacey was trying to tell us something...lol!

December 28th, 2008. I leave you with 2 more fun Holiday pictures! The first one is a picture of me with most of the gifts I received from my friends. Crystal got me the warm and cozy scarf and hat, Stacey made the delicious candy in the red tub and gave me the Berry Kiss body wash, and Steph gave me the awesome razorback bag. I couldn't help myself...I'm a dork, I know. :) The second one is how Abbey fell asleep with her head on top of Rosco's head after a long and exhausting Christmas.....aren't they just the sweetest things :) HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!