Christmas 2012 - Part Two

For years my Mom has talked about having family come to her home for a visit.  Since my parents have lived overseas for over the past ten years, this wasn't often possible.  But now that they have (semi) retired and are living in their new home in Mexico, we were all invited to spend Christmas at their home this year!  Everyone was able to make it down except for David and Isaiah, so it was a crowd!

With so many cousin, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, in-laws, etc. to visit and play with, we enjoyed relaxing and just spending lots of time around the house together.  Of course the hammock was a hit with everyone!

A bonus of going Mexico for Christmas, besides all the family, was getting away from the cold weather and enjoying the outdoor pool down the street.

Being Christmas we did do all the typical Christmas traditions: caroling, decorating the gingerbread house & cookies for Santa, reading from the Bible, tracking Santa's progress as he made his way down to Nana and Grandpa Ducky's home; but we also incorporated some new Mexican Christmas traditions: Christmas pinata and visiting the Christmas Eve Tableaus at the local village church (Click HERE to read more about these two traditions).

Christmas Decorations

Gingerbread House

Advent Calendars!  Erin's in the back moving the camel on the advent calendar I remember growing up with as a little girl, and Gavin is putting baby Jesus on Nana's other advent calendar.  You may notice it looks alot like ours - Nana & Grandpa Ducky  gave us the same one a few years back

Tracking Santa as he sets out delivering presents around the world

 Caroling at the neighbors' homes

Decorating cookies for Santa (or just eating the icing!)

Christmas Pinata
After each of the kids took a few rounds at trying to knock it down, we finally had to get Nana in there to help them out

Reading from the Bible

Nativities at San Andres Church

Reading Davey - My Mom was given this book when she was a little girl, and I remember her reading it to us each Christmas growing up.  I love that the tradition continues, as she now reads it to the grandkids!

Christmas eve pajamas - Growing up my Nana and Papa always gave us new PJs to open on Christmas eve.  Now they give them to the grandkids.  The kids loved opening their new PJs from Nanny M and Papa, and it was quite an ordeal trying to get a decent picture of them all together.

I love Gavin and Isaac in this one

It took seven adults and lots of crazy faces!

Christmas morning it was fun watching the kids get all excited about what Santa left in their stockings.  It's always nice to get gifts, but what I loved more was seeing how excited everyone was to watch others open the gifts they had given!

Waiting for everyone to wake up Christmas Morning

Thirteen people makes for lots of gifts under the tree!

The kids were all over Grandpa Ducky to see what was in his stocking

I don't know how he does this!