Finally Christmas!

Reid has been soooo excited about Christmas this year.  It's been way more fun since he actually "gets" it!  We've been looking at our Peanuts countdown clock every day, eating a chocolate from his advent calendar after dinner each day, and talking nonstop about Santa bringing him Snot Rod.  Then we looked forward to Grammy and Grumpy coming to visit us...and the big day was nearly here.  I was actually a little nervous...did we put away Buddy, the elf, who we'd told Reid would fly back to Santa until next year?  Check.  Did we put out cookies for Santa?  Check.  Reid picked some special ones, including a huge sugar cookie.  Did we set up the train that Santa brings?  Check.  Did we remember the stocking?  Check.  I still had trouble sleeping, wondering if I'd done everything I should.  This Santa stuff is a big deal!  But how much fun is it to see how excited your own child gets?!  It's kind of like being a kid all over again :)

The next morning,  we adults had everything all ready.  Grumpy remembered to put Santa's cookie plate back down near the fireplace (I had been worried Dixie might help herself and leave us her own Christmas morning surprises, so we'd wrapped it up overnight).

 

Laughingly, someone didn't even wake up until close to eight, which is about an hour past when he's normally awake.  I was trying to decide if I should wake him or make breakfast when he awoke.  After a quick bathroom break, it was present time!  He still wanted help opening his presents, unlike most kids who love to rip the paper off immediately.  Oh, happy day!  First he opened the Santa gifts.  There was a remote controlled crane set... (a few of the pics are dark--I can take pictures during videoing, but I guess it doesn't flash)

A stocking full of goodies like candy, his own flashlight (so he'll quit stealing Daddy's), a top, a Cars Nerf gun, a flashing Mickey Mouse snow spinner, etc...

...an M&M machine...

 AND...could it be?!  Yes...it's Snot Rod!!

Oh, happy day!  The gang's all together, now.  Is this a happy face, or what??  And this kiddo cracks us up.  Later that same day, he said, "Halloween is over, Thanksgiving is over, now Christmas is over.  Next Christmas, I ask Santa for Flo!"  Flo is another Cars car, which he realized he didn't have as we were watching his new Planes movie.

"I want to open MORE presents!" And so he enjoyed opening gifts from everyone else, too.

 At first, he enjoyed passing out presents (or in this case, with a breakable one for Grammy, he assisted).  But then he just wanted to open all the ones that were his, as any kid on Christmas morning would.

I even let him open Baby Carter's present...the rubber duckies he'd picked out all by himself, and a cute little baby wash cloth.

Then it was on to the guys putting together the complicated crane set (why are kids' toys so darn complicated??) and the girls making monkey bread.

 Later that day, we all enjoyed watching Planes.  Reid helped himself to some of Grumpy's pork skins.  We still crack up because this is one of those things we thought he'd hate to eat, but he loves them!

After all that excitement, we needed to let this silly boy run off some energy.  When promised a trip to the park once he got dressed, he promptly stripped and proceeded to run around the house like a maniac.

 

 A picture just didn't do it justice, so I had to take video, too...

 It was wonderful to be able to stay here in Dallas and not travel (thanks, Mom and Dad!) because I would've been extremely uncomfortable in the car and the packing with presents and all would've been torture.  We had a fun, quiet, family Christmas and enjoyed each moment, thankful for the True meaning of CHRISTmas.