Wrapping presents

 This morning we wrapped Christmas presents.

Mollie wanted to use the scissors just like Ben.  (Shhhhh. . . that's Zac's present she's wrapping.)

Christmas Tree

Saturday night we decorated our Christmas tree.

Ben put the star on top of the tree.

 I'm putting on my favorite ornament that I made in Sunday School when I was little.

Ben and Mollie really got into decorating the tree.  Most of our ornaments are around the middle of the tree because they liked climbing up on the step ladder.

 They had been to a birthday party Saturday evening and had their faces painted.  Mollie is a pink puppy dog.

 Ben is Simba.

 John helping Ben hang an ornament a little higher than he could reach from the step stool.

Mollie threw up a couple of times Sunday morning so she and John stayed home from church.  Sunday night we all stayed home and added a few more ornaments to the tree.

Last Week

 Ben drew this great Christmas tree.

Ben was very proud of himself for making the bed for us.

 I've done most of my Christmas shopping online.  Ben and Mollie haven't been able to look in many of the boxes but have been happy to pop the bubble wrap enclosed.

 Helping me finish Christmas cards by putting stickers on the envelopes.

 Ben designed and built this table himself.  I held the pieces steady for him, but he hammered all the nails in himself.

 After his table dried, Ben put it next to his bed to sit his monkey clock on.

Christmas Cheer

It's beginning to look like Christmas at our house.  We haven't put our tree up yet, but . . .

 Santa made an appearance bringing toys for Mollie and me.

 Santa trimming his beard.

During nap time Saturday afternoon, John hung lights on our house, while I assisted.  He started on the roof, but soon decided that the ladder would be safer.

 Do you think Ben was really napping while we hung up lights?

 Headed towards the highest peak over the garage.

 Our house lit up after dark.  It isn't the Griswald's but it's a major lighting success for us.

 Tonight was the White Gift Service at church.  This is the 4-year-old preschool choir.  Ben is on the far right.  They sang Away in a Manger and Mary Had a Baby.  After they performed, they went to sit with their parents while the older kids sang.

After the children's choirs sing, the congregation sings Christmas carols while everyone walks to the front of the church one row at a time.  Each family takes a white gift bag full of can goods to stock the church food pantry and receives a lit candle.  The lights are gradually dimmed as the sanctuary is lit by candle light.

My video is terrible because I was sitting too far back and because I realized half way through that I was holding up my camera but wasn't recording.  All I could see was Ben, Abby, and the backs of a lot of heads,  BUT you can hear them singing.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!  Ben says he's thankful for pictures to color, our house, his clothes, music and the sun.  Mollie is thankful for her Daddy, Blankie, bananas, juice, and Hal.

Movie Night

Friday night is movie night.  We're working through all the animated Disney movies one Friday night at a time.  You can tell what we've watch each week by what they dress up as.  Last week we watched Beauty and the Beast.  Here we have Belle and Cogsworth (the clock).

Packing Party

This is National Collection Week for Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes.  We always love buying our gifts and packing our shoeboxes each year.  It was even more fun this year because we had a shoebox packing party at church tonight.  On Thursday morning, Ben labored over a letter to put in his box.  He wrote, "The Lord is good.  He watches over you."  (I had to help him with the spelling.)  That came from two verses he's memorized in Sunday School this fall.  Nahum 1:7 – “The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble.  He cares for those who trust in Him.”  Psalm 121:5a – “The Lord watches over you.”  Mollie colored a picture of the nativity scene to put in her box.

 All the kids (that come on Sunday nights) watching a video about Operation Christmas Child.

 On Monday we shopped for gifts to put in our boxes.  We always get carried away so we shared some of the things we brought with friends.

 Packing their shoeboxes.  Ben's was not packed with the precision that I usually do it, but he had a lot more fun.

 Getting some help from our good friend Emma.

The whole group gathered around our shoeboxes.