The Greg Beutel Christmas 2011

If you remember, last year we had our little family Christmas on Christmas Day...not so much by choice, but by reason of flu. :P  Thankfully, this year we were all healthy throughout the entire Christmas season, minus some colds and Max's ear infection.  Praise the Lord!  It was so wonderful to actually attend all of our families' get-togethers!  This year we celebrated on the Thursday evening before Christmas...simply because after that we were going to be busy!


The kids and I set the table for supper...trying to make it look a little special!

After I put the small Christmas tree on the table, the kids decided they wanted to decorate the table with some colored balls.  Everyone got some at their place. :)

Max and Nora were big helpers for supper...here they are picking all of the grapes off of the stems so I could wash them for our chocolate fondue.

Then, we made chicken nuggets!  After I cut them up and mixed up the flour coating, Nora shook the bag!

Max got a turn, too, of course.

After supper, the kids were obviously very excited to open their presents.  They had to wait a bit, though!

First, Greg read the Christmas story out of a book we have and even acted it out with their Little People Nativity set.

Max listened pretty intently...Nora was more concerned about keeping Tirzah out of the nativity set!

After the story, we sang a couple Christmas carols...

...at which point Tirzah could finally play with stable figurines. :)

I wanted a picture of the kids in front of the tree, but the bows on the presents were too interesting for the little one!

Tirzah opened her gift first...

...then Nora...

...then Max, who was so busy opening he wouldn't even look up at the camera.

Max LOVED his new dinosaur book!

And LOVED dressing up like a triceratops!

Once the kids were done, I had Greg open his gift.  Every year since we got married, I get him an ornament for Christmas, trying to make it a memento of something from that year.  2006-we got married, 2007-we were expecting Max, 2008-we were expecting Nora, 2009-Max and I were both sick before Christmas, so Greg got a trophy for being #1 Dad and taking care of us, 2010-I got him a little camper because we bought our pop-up.  So, this year, I was stuck trying to think of something new.  I know we had Tirzah, but I didn't see any family ornaments I liked, plus all of the 'new baby' ornaments usually only show one child, and we have three!  I racked my brain, and then I finally came up with a good idea.  I scoured the Internet looking for the ornaments I wanted, and finally I found a woman on Etsy who makes her own.  I think I got the last ones in her shop, and I was thrilled when I got them in the mail!  Here are Greg's 2011 ornaments....

...zipliners!  I think they're adorable!  (And I think he liked them, too.)

Greg's present to me was the beautiful angel in the back of my nativity.  He gave her to me early so I could have her up a little longer! :)

She's so pretty and she really completes the scene, I think!

Here are the ornaments on the tree...they are just so cute, I think I will have to find a place to keep them up year round.  They just make me smile! :)