December Fun

The Christmas festivities started this year with our annual OC Family Breakfast with Santa. This year, Kaitlyn got to go through the rotations with her BFF Hannah. Everything is SO much more fun when you have a dear friend to experience it with!

We ate breakfast and made reindeer ornaments (which I thought were quite complicated for the preschool set!).

And then we saw the big man himself. Santa! Kaitlyn had no problems with him at all. Ethan wasn't quite so sure. When he first sat down, he insisted on leaning away from Santa and turning his face completely away. In the picture below, we had managed to convince him to at least face forward for a picture, although his body language still communicates his distrust of the strange man in the red suit. But there were no tears, which is a huge improvement from last year! Kaitlyn's requests were a globe, a snowglobe and boots. Ethan asked for stamps (the ink kind, not the postage kind).

What Christmas would be complete without a visit to the Opryland Hotel? I think the kids had forgotten just how spectacular it was because their jaws dropped open and their faces were full of amazement when they first entered and saw all the lights and decorations. They loved the giant trees. It's so fun seeing the world through the eyes of a small child.

Then it was time for Christmas parties and programs at school. For the first time, Kaitlyn and Ethan got to be together in a program! And when they saw each other on stage, they made sure to wave at each other. So cute! Ethan didn't sing a word of the songs, but he did shake his bell with gusto when it was time. Kaitlyn's class was the oldest class on stage, and they were told repeatedly that they had to set a good example for the little ones and sing loud. She took that responsibility to heart and found the courage to sing out on stage for the first time. She was quite proud of herself...and of course we were too! Maybe in two years, Ethan will start singing in his programs too :)

After the program, it was time for class parties. Ethan's party was short and sweet--perfect for a bunch of 2-year-olds with short attention spans!

Here he is with his beloved Miss Julie. I know it looks like he feels the same way about her as he does about Santa, but I promise that he loves her :) He was just being a little shy.

Santa and Mrs. Claus came around to all the class parties. Ethan only got close enough to snatch a candy cane, but Kaitlyn was all about hopping up in his lap.

And here's Kaitlyn with Miss Kristy. We've had several teachers at Otter Creek now, and we've loved every single one of them!

So when school gets out for two weeks, we have to find other ways to spend time with friends and get some energy out. So we had the Brown girls over one day for some welcome distraction. They all wanted to sit together while they ate their snack.

And somehow, they all managed to fit in the closet when they were "hiding" from the pretend tornado that was apparently about to destroy the house. Good to know that we've got tornado safety training covered!

More about Christmas coming soon!