Christmas ...

I can remember being excited for Christmas as a kid. That feeling of the best day of the year finally arriving. So excited for Santa. I got that same feeling this year for Mary. I couldn't wait for her to wake up and see the presents under the tree. Of course that's the one day she slept past her usual 10 am wake up. Justin and I enjoyed our coffee and watched the Disney holiday parade on TV while we waited. When she finally woke and came down stairs, her eyes lite up. She knew exactly what those wrapped presents were. (She's had a lot of practice from her birthday and grandpa giving her presents to open early.)

Christmas Eve ...

Christmas Morming ...

Christmas Day ... 

Santa made a special stop after dinner to visit with Mary, but she wasn't having it. There was no crying, just screams of pure terror. 

IOW Gala ...

Last night was MGM internationals gala. All the employee of the year honorees and nominees were there for all properties. It was amazing how they transformed the arena. We got to get all dressed up and even walked the red carpet. 

Wayne Brady was the host of the night. He did his improve and was hilarious! 

There was even a performance from cirque de solei Michael Jackson. 

Hubby was on stage! Can you find him? 

Dinner was super fancy. My favorite was defiantly the dessert. I mean come on, it glowed! 

To top off the night there was a surprise concert. TLC featuring lil Mama. To be honest their new stuff was no good, but I did love hearing all their old hits!

EOY Lunch ...

Last month was Justin's lunch for the announcement of employee of the year. He didn't win but did win best red carpet pose! He even got a gold lion trophy! 

For the cherry on top, there was a surprise for all runner ups ... A free vacation! Including time off and spending money! 

Tomorrow is the big gala. A fancy dinner and surprise concert! I can't wait to get all fancy for a really fun night to come. 

Red Coach House ...

Like every year we were going to see the synchronised lights at the house on Darby. I was super excited this year for Mary to see the lights. Christmas lights are one of her favorite things. Unfortunately there was no decorations or lights set up. I was really disappointed, but I did find another house. Not as good as Darby, but Mary loved it. 

Gift of Lights ...

The other night we took Mary to the speedway to see the gift of lights. She rode around and my lap for a front row you of the lights. At times she was even hanging out the window. She has been obsessed with Christmas lights ever since she was born. 

After the lights we had dinner and headed back to my parents house. My dad pulled out an early Christmas present for Mary to open. It was a Minnie Mouse house and crawl tunnel. She is obsessed with it and takes all her toys in there to play with. She even had a juice party with auntie Kimmy. 

Town Square Santa ...

Last Sunday we went down to Town Square with the Cohens and Erdmans. We were originally planning to visit the Santa at Bass Pro Shop, but they were turning people away since they were so busy. I have to say this Santa was not the jolliest, but I don't think it helped that our kids were not feeling it. 

He did at least crack a smile for some. 

And yes, our husbands needed a picture with Santa as we'll. 

After waiting in line for over two hours the kids needed to play and run around. We seized that opportunity to wait for it to snow. Mary absolutely loved it. She kier tilting her head back dying to catch the flakes on her tongue. 

Shopping & Playing ...

We were at the Fashion Show mall doing some shopping and Mary wanted to run around a bit. We took a break at their playground and she loved it. There was a few older girls that started playing with her, it was the cutest. 

She loved going up the slide but didn't like coming down at all. She had a look of terror the entire time. 

Ethel M's ...

My dad was out of town for business last week so we took my mom to Ethel Ms Cactus Garden. We started off in the gift shop and bought ourselves some hot chocolate. The good stuff. Not the packet stuff. 

It was our first time ever visiting the cactus garden with all of its holiday lights. It was beautiful!