I wish I could say that the Christmas season was filled with snow, but it really wasn't! It snowed once in December (that I can remember) and I'm glad I got this picture because that was it! No white Christmas in Indiana!
Kate made sure to stay warm though. She's all about the accessories!
I had a RUF baking event while Curtis was at RUF training. A fun group of students came over and made all sorts of goodies as we prepared for the annual RUF Christmas party. We played games after our baking was done. I'm so thankful that I get to be a part of this ministry!
You can see most of our baking work below. We made chocolate covered pretzels, peanut butter blossoms and my favorite - dark chocolate candy cane cookies! We also made Reese's bars, but those aren't pictured.
It's been really sweet not only to see how the students have welcomed new students, but also how they have included our children. Our kids sure love their "big friends!"
Even our introvert, Kate, loves spending time with them!
There was a white elephant gift exchange. Anna got an avocado! Haha!
Kate got some cough drops!
Anna took good care of Drew while the activity continued.
We sang Christmas carols about our Savior's birth.
This is a group shot of everyone from the Christmas party. It was such a joyous occasion!
We also had a nice RUF staff Christmas party a couple days later. We're so glad to have interns helping us, especially since RUF has been growing so much!
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| From left to right: myself, Carrie (intern), Iris (married to Ryan), Ryan (intern), and Curtis |
Anna also had a winter party at school! Curtis helped her make a gingerbread house.
Kate and Drew loved getting to sit with her class and hear the principal read The Polar Express. It was really precious!
Drew turned 8 months old right before Christmas. When he gets really happy, he flaps his hands and feet so we now call him "flappy happy."
He also turns his head to the side when he makes eye contact with us sometimes (similar to below). It's really cute!
Here's the comparison shot at all 3 at 8 months:
Papa got these adorable matching outfits for all of our kids! They turned out really good so I'm going to post a few below.
And then it was Christmas Eve! We worshipped at a church near our house since our church didn't have a service. It was fun! I can't believe the kids all looked at the camera at the same time!
This guy fell asleep in his new pajamas as he prepared to have his first Christmas.
And here's several pictures of opening gifts on Christmas Day! The kids were very excited about their new acquisitions. Kate would even say "I always wanted this!" to everything she would open! They had a ball!
Of course, we had to put Drew in the same onesie that his sisters had for their first Christmas. :)
Drew had additional Christmas outfits that he wore leading up to Christmas also!
The one with the toy soldiers below was handmade over 30 years ago by Curtis's mom for Curtis. It makes it even more special that Drew could wear it since she isn't able to make Drew clothing like she did for Anna and Kate now that she has passed.
One of our Christmas traditions is to sing Happy Birthday to Jesus in honor of his birth.
The whole crew loved it! It was eaten within 3 days! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas season too!
