Christmas Fun!!

We have been having lots of fun this Christmas season.  We have been enjoying our Advent traditions that are helping us prepare our hearts to celebrate Jesus' birth on Christmas Day and we have been having fun with some of our other fun traditions!

It all started with a trip to Cheekwood with Doc and Gaga and Uncle Brad!  They just started the lights last year and we love it!  Both girls walked around the gardens or ran to look at each set of lights.  Holly and Jolly the reindeer were actually up walking around and we got to see them for awhile.  We got to roast marshmellows and have s'mores again this year.  It wasn't too cold, but cold enough to make it feel like Christmas!!  We had so much fun spending time with family and getting to see pretty lights.

Later that week, we went to Christmas dinner at the nursing home where my grandmother lives.  We got to spend some time with Tiece and they even had a surprise guest - SANTA!  He was pretty awesome.  The girls were the only kids there so he spent a lot of time with the girls.  They were sweet.  Monkey was shy, but she sat with him.  She told him she didn't know what she wanted for Christmas - to surprise her.  Lil Bit had lots of questions and just sat and chatted him up.  Amazing to see their personalities coming out.

The next week, we had a day packed full of fun!  We headed out to 3rd Coast Clay to paint our Christmas ornaments.  Monkey chose a guitar and Lil Bit chose a snowman this year.  Lil Bit had a little more staying power for painting, but ran out of patience quicker than Monkey.  Monkey took her time this year and was more intentional with her painting.  I'm going to love to see how their ornaments change through the year!  After we were done painting we headed next door to get some donuts from a yummy bakery.  We had heard they had paleo donuts and they did!!  They were yummy!!  Chocolate peppermint and chocolate orange.  The girls enjoyed their donut too!

We call this the 2 year old smile.  This is her normal smile right now... :)

She really is growing up right before our eyes.  Beautiful girl, slow down...

 

The concentration...

 

YUMMY PALEO DONUTS!!

 

After rest time, we headed out to Opryland with Pop and JuJu to walk around the hotel and see the lights and decorations.  We had fun walking around the different lobbies and looking at the lights.  They had some new decorations out this year that were really pretty.  The girls loved stopping at the dancing waters for awhile, and then Pop and JuJu treated us to yogurt at the end of the evening.  They were also able to pick out Nutcrackers that Pop got them for their souvenir for the evening!  Another fun evening with family and sweet memories made for the girls.

Pop talking to Lil Bit about the nativity scene and the story...

 

We stopped for a bite to eat in front of the fireplace before the evening ended...

After we left Opryland, we took the girls over the Dancing Lights of Jellystone.  Last year was our first year to do this and it is going to be one of my favorite traditions.  We love watching the lights as much as the girls.  I popped us popcorn and the girls climbed up in the front seat with us.  We all ate our popcorn and pointed out our favorite lights on our drive thru the property.  A fun way to end a pretty awesome day!