Christmas Eve

Isn't Anthony just the cutest Santa's Little Helper ever? Honestly, I couldn't resist the outfit. It probably is completely over-the-top for this two year old, but then again it was his first Christmas with us.
A really got into opening up gifts. I wasn't sure if he would like it or not because at his second birthday party he could care less about presents. Now he LOVES presents! The only downfall would be clothing items --- all pajamas, pants, shirts and even the Carhart jacket from Grandpa Willie got thrown over his shoulder. He just wasn't interested in anything that wasn't a toy. Good thing he can get away with that!

Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Willie posing with A. Their hopes were to be in their house for Christmas, but unfortunately that didn't happen. Things are moving along with the unexpected "remodeling" job, but it's at a slower pace than they would like. Hopefully they will be able to move in within the next couple of months and our next celebration can be held there.
The Tuttles - our host for this year's Christmas celebration. Be sure to check out Team Tuttle's blog for more photos!
I just love this photo. Anthony has become quite a daddy's boy, which is so cute to see. They have such a close relationship; it's fun to watch them whenever they are together.

Aren't We Lucky?

It's easy for me to become a bit crabby and start to hate the long months of winter. The snow, the bitter cold, the constant shoveling and scrapping of ice off of the car, needing to get so bundled up just to go outside, etc, etc, etc. And it's only December!
However, when I stop being crabby about this season long enough to take time to LOOK I see such an amazing landscape. I'm feeling extremely lucky to live in a state that has four seasons of such vast difference and beauty surrounding me throughout the year.

The Best Gift

Our first Christmas together as a family has come and gone. We had a fabulous time celebrating up north and have lots of pictures and stories to share. More to come -- hopefully tomorrow.
Mark and I would both have to agree, though, the best gift would be Anthony's presence in our lives. Just look at that smile and wild hair. There's nothing about him that we don't just love.
We are certainly blessed!

Hard Workin' Boy

Santa came early to the Hanson house! Mark found a good deal on Craig's List for this workbench and picked it up last week. It was suppose to be from Santa; however, it would be kind of hard to haul it up north without Anthony seeing it so he could get it on Christmas morning. Plus we would need to get it back home after the holidays and I have a feeling we'll need all the space the minivan provides. Therefore, we decided that Santa would come this weekend. It definitely has been a hit; A has enjoyed pounding in the nails, sawing things in half and playing peek a boo with mom too!

Ugly Sweaters Get Together

In spite of the snow and cold yesterday the girls were still able to get together to celebrate the holidays. I must say the "festive" - okay, hideous sweaters - was a lot of fun. Tracy's homemade Christmas bulb earrings really added to the overall look! We had a great time starting off at Tracy's house, eating at Applebee's - yes, we actually went out in public looking like this - and then revealing who we had for Secret Santa at Jenn's.
I'm so thankful to have a group of girls who are awesome to work with as well as hang out with and have fun. I am certainly blessed by their presence in my life!

Mr. Fireman Snowman

On Sunday we braved the pelting sleet and went outside to play for 30 minutes or so. It was the perfect condition to build the first snowman of the year! I'm looking forward to more snow, warmer temperature and more opportunities to build a whole snowman family. Oh the fun we will have this winter!

Baking Weekend

This weekend Mom and Manda came down to make some Christmas goodies. As you can see from the above picture our baking list kept growing. We ended up baking from 8:30 in the morning until around 7:00 Saturday night and ended up with 18 different treats. We all had a blast and agreed this will need to be annual get together.

Auntie Manda definitely is the creative force behind all of the cute cookies. She did take time to help Anthony decorate a few sugar cookies. (I have to agree with Manda that A's cookies could put people in some sort of sugar overload shock!)

Look at the concentration! MORE M&Ms!

Mom making a Tonja-favorite, DATE BALLS! They look kind of interesting, but taste oh so good!

We will definitely do this again next year - it was so much fun to hang out together and get so much done in one day. In the future we would like to keep some tried and true recipes as well as add to our list. (Next year we would like to do popcorn balls, caramels and hard candy.) Anybody out there have a creative, yummy holiday recipe you wouldn't mind sharing with The Hat Trick?