Ringing in the NEW YEAR!!!

Wyatt's first movie on the big screen!

FIRST MOVIE... On New Year's Eve morning, Mimi and Poppy came over to stay with Isaac so we could take our big guy to see his FIRST MOVIE... Tangled! It was SO MUCH FUN!!!! When we arrived to the first theater they were all sold out. We were feeling a little bummed but determined to make it to a showing while we had a babysitter for Ike. So we finally found some tickets and walked into the theater during the last preview. Whew! It was a close call but we made it and it was well worth it. Wyatt sat right in between us with a big tub of popcorn and a soda and watched the entire movie. It was a such a cute movie and such a fun memory with Wyatt. As soon as the credits began to roll, Wyatt stood up and said, "Let's do it again! Let's watch Yogi Bear!" He's hooked! As soon as we got home, he didn't stop to take off his coat and shoes like ususal in the mudroom but said, "I'll just leave them on so we can go again!" It is such a delight as parents to see your kids having fun... I think Joe and I had even more fun than our Wy guy!

BIRTHDAY FUN... Later in the day we got to go celebrate cousin Ashtyn's 6th Birthday at Ben and Jerry's ice cream parlor. If anyone knows my boys, they know how much they LOVE ice cream, so this was a huge hit for the McCulley boys!

All of the flavors to pick from and my Wy guy chose plane old chocolate, of course! Isaac devoured some sweet cream too and loved every bite!

Wyatt is totally smitten with his Auntie B. Whenver we are going somewhere with Ashtyn and Daxton, the first thing Wy wants to know is, "Will Auntie B be there?"

The big birthday bunch

We finished the evening with a big family dinner at Freddie's and then headed to Trent and Brianna's to play some cards and eat more food. We knew we would probably be the first to leave their house since we were driving to IA the next day, so we had to role play our departure with Wyatt several times before we agreed to go. You see, Wyatt normally has these big, dramatic melt down tantrums when it's time to leave Ashy and Daxton's house. It has gotten a bit out of control. So we talked through and role played how Wyatt would respond, using self-control and obedience when Daddy and Mommy told him it was time to leave. He agreed that he would obey when time to go... We decided that it would be a good test. Well, Wyatt was a man of his word!!!! When we said it was time to go, he told all of the boys and girls goodbye, gave his cousins a hug and said, "See you next time!" Awww... making some progress!

Christmas in Kansas!

Christmas really is my FAVORITE season of all! No, I'm not a fan of the cold, wintry weather... Winter is actually my least favorite season! But there's just something about Christmas that warms my heart. I love the lights and activity, I love buying gifts for others, I love the aroma of good food, and I even love the music that starts on Thanksgiving day and repeats over and over until New Years! But most of all, the 'something' that warms my heart is devoting a whole month to celebrating the birth of JESUS! I feel like we were really able to savor the season this year. Wyatt and I went through our "Advent of Ideas" book together for the 25 days leading up to Christmas. It was so much fun to talk about the symbolism of the decorations in our home, the reason for giving gifts to others, and the humble birth of our Savior in a manger. I've loved hearing Wyatt sing "Happy Birthday, Jesus" in sync with our k-love radio station and seeing his little imagination run wild with the manger characters! I read a book about the value in creating TRADITION in your home, so Joe and I put our heads together and pondered what traditions we wanted to begin for our family. One place we decided to start is having Christmas morning at home together... waking up in our pjs, eating cinnamon rolls, reading the Christmas story, and letting our kids open their 3 gifts from us! BUT, it wouldn't feel like Christmas without the crazy chaos of extended family around (we found this out all to well last year with a very quiet Christmas in Maryland!) so we joined up with the rest of the crew for more excitement and celebration that lasted until the wee hours of the morning.

It took Wyatt almost an hour on Christmas morning to finally notice the GIFTS that were awaiting him...

Gift One: Play Dough activitiy center! Gift 2: Doctor Kit

Gift 3: NERF Gun Watch out, Ikey bear! Wyatt really focusing on his target Isaac eating the nerf balls discovering the stockings Ike is all about the food! He got a hold of a bucket of chocolate mints and refused to let go until he got a sweet taste! : )

Isaac was worn out and decided to take a rest in his high chair to gear up for the rest of the day

Gifts, gifts, and more gifts!

Both boys got a TONKA trunk from Mimi and Poppy

Isaac adoring his cousins...

The boys eating birthday cupcakes for Jesus!

This was my favorite Christmas yet... Until next year!