Christmas highlights.

I am having a really hard time getting back into a routine of some sort after the last couple weeks have been filled with my favorite things...

Family!!
Ahem, food.
And Christmas.  I adore everything about Christmas.

So let's jump right into it, shall we?

We spent the week before Christmas with Tyler's family, they came to visit and spent 4 days here. We love spending time with them, and bonus!  They brought puppies!!!

So, you can probably guess what the boys got for Christmas this year from Nana and Papa! (and yes, they asked first... that seems to be everyone's first question, ha!)  She wasn't old enough to be away from her Mama yet, so we will get her soon. In the mean time, we enjoyed the snuggles.  Jaxon kept saying "awww, she's so cute! Can we keep her?" and "but I really love her Mom!"

We can't wait to have her back home with us.

Our times together always fly by way too fast, and are filled with lots of down time... just hanging out and enjoying each other!  And there's always Monopoly Deal and Dominos involved as well.  :)

The night before we left for my parents house, we did our "Christmas Eve" with the boys.  As usual, they get a new pair of jammies.

Ohhh, for the cute.

I love how this is becoming their signature pose, Jax quickly wraps his arm around his brother and Cohen's chubby little fingers try and find Jaxon's neck.  I love it so much.

The next morning was our "Christmas"... a few days early.  :)

I really went easy on the gifts this year for the boys because I knew they'd be spoiled rotten by everyone else... and I was right.  I started feeling bad for 'only' getting them 2 gifts... and then I woke up.  ;)

There are no words to adequately describe "Christmas morning" with your own family.  For us, it doesn't necessarily have to be ON Christmas morning, though some day we hope that it can be, but there's just something magical about it all.  Pure contentment and peace as I sipped my coffee and looked around at our sweet boys and the many blessings we have been given.

Later that day, we left for my parents house.  Never a dull moment when all of us are together... :)  The boys love playing with their cousins, and they always sleep so well afterwards.  We spent our days playing game after game and taking a few breaks to nap and eat, oh - and make homemade perogies and Pioneer Woman cinnamon rolls. So much fun!

Christmas morning pictures are never flattering, but they are such a necessity, yes?

I really can't think of a single thing that would have made this Christmas season better.  We are so thankful, once again, to live close enough to both families that we get to see them and celebrate together.  There's so much to be thankful for.

And, as I type this, I'm sitting here listening to mice squealing in our walls or in the ceiling.  So I'm trying to remind myself of that last sentence I wrote.

Merry Christmas to you and your family!