The turkey fry

So for Christmas we had turkey. We put one in the oven and another small one we decided to try and fry. (It seemed like southern thing to do.) The fried turkey ended up being the most expensive dinner we've ever made. (Who knew turkey fryers and oil were so expensive?) We ended up borrowing a gas tank to help keep the cost down. Then there was the logistics of frying the thing. Apparently it can be dangerous (just look up frying turkeys on u tube). We finally got it all figured out and done. It was pretty yummy injected with its cajun spices, but I don't think we will be going to the effort again anytime soon. As for the rest of Christmas dinner- Emily was here. Need I say more? (Just thinking about it makes me hungry!)

Christmas Day

Can I just say that the pictures don't even do the massive amounts of presents justice. Remember, the tree is huge! The presents went all around the bottom and behind it as well. Jenny put the presents that she bought out the night before and the under the tree was already full from her gifts (Matthew said he thought Santa wouldn't come because Jenny got so much stuff!) They were surprised that he still came and man they must have been good! Even Anubis joined in the holiday spirit. Besides getting decorated, he had a huge bone wrapped up for him. He went crazy when he smelled it. I was worried that he would tear through all the presents looking for it once he knew it was there so we had to put it up high. When he finally got it he was pretty excited, but he could finish it all so when we let him out he took it outside and buried it! Everyone else got so many things it would take all day to list them, but there was one highlight I wanted to mention. Matt was surprised by a giant new tv from his mom, HD tv channels, and a blue ray player. Our entertainment upgraded significantly. The boys loved all the games, toys, and books (Percy Jackson and Calvin and Hobbes books have been great). We all got great clothes- thank you Jenny! The best part of course was having everyone together. Just seeing all those stockings lined up makes me happy because they represent all the family coming together. I wish we could get together more often.

Christmas Eve/ Jenny's bday

The candles burned all night for good luck in the coming year.

















Matthew getting a book on making paper airplanes- the kid seriously loves making paper airplanes.






















































































Everyone went and saw Jim Carrey's Christmas Carol earlier in the day (Sick Andrew and I stayed home). We had steak spagetti for dinner and cake for Jenny. Jenny had bday presents, then the boys finally got to open up something. They all got their matching new pjs from Nana and one other present. They were pretty excited (I didn't even make them watch It's a wonderful life before they could open it.) At this point we had Matt's mom, sisters, and brother in the house (Nana, Jenny, Emily, Jeffery)- and it was just fantastic! It was really the way Christmas is supposed to feel. The kids all slept in the same room (the was Ken and I would) and feel asleep surprisingly fast with Christmas just around the corner.

Big Brother

We've been sick a lot this winter. The week of Christmas the boys passed around a yucky bug. I took this picture when Andrew was pretty sick and Matthew snuggled him trying to help him feel better and take care of him- it was so nice. (Now why does he try to kill him the rest of the time?)

Christmas party

I love that picture of Owen because it shows how much the boys love doing Christmas stuff (he was decorating a picture of a tree). We also got to go to Matthew's school party. He had a lot of fun, and the boys loved getting to go!

Tired?

I love family movie night. We all watch a movie and eat some popcorn. The kids love it too. Owen got tired while watching the movie, but refused to stop eating the popcorn and this is the result. He actually fell asleep with his hand in the popcorn bowl. The funny thing is that his brothers just went ahead and finished the popcorn- eating around his hand until it was all gone.

Oh Christmas Tree

This is another Christmas tree we had this year. This one had quotes for everyday in Dec. until Christmas. We uncovered one everyday. The boys thought it was a lot of fun counting down!























































































































































Aww, decorating the Christmas tree. The time honored tradition filled with love and mayhem. This year we went a little crazy because we have a two story living room with a big front window. It was 12 ft. and really big. Nana paid for the many ornaments which took a while to put on. (The process involved climbing up onto a decorative shelf above the entertainment unit in order to reach the top. Matthew made the star for the top. I think their favorite part was playing with the tubes that the ornaments came in. (Owen started that- calling himself a Christmas monster.) We also let them pick a special ornament every year. This year Andrew picked a snowman with a blue hat with a color changing light inside him. Matthew picked one that looks like a handheld gamming device. Owen picked one that looked like Bumblebee (he really likes that transformer).
The really funny thing about the tree happened a few days later when we noticed it leaning a bit before going to bed. It was a HEAVY tree and I figured we could straighten it in the morning. At 4am I hear this loud CRASH! I shook Matt awake right away yelling, "The tree!" It took up the entire living room on the floor. We put it back up the next day and eventually got the ornaments back on, but it never looked as nice as it did the first time. Decorating takes long enough once, the second time around didn't hold the same magic. I have to say, we missed going to Germany/Austria, but it was really nice to be able to do all this in our own home on our own schedule, without jetlag!