'Tis the Season

Has it really been two weeks since my last post? The Christmas season is flying by! (Well, not in the eyes of my very anxious five-year-old!) Here's a bit about what we've been up to.

We started some of our daily advent traditions on Dec. 1st, including hanging a piece of candy on the wreath, eating a piece of chocolate from the Trader Joe's advent calendar, and burning our advent candle from Grandma Lillo. (Thanks, Mom!)
Grandma Weyel sent a fun "online advent calendar" that the kids have been loving. We have some cute video and pictures of the two of them together, watching each day on the computer. I adore seeing them have such fun together!
Gary and I had the opportunity for some Christmas fun, just the two of us. We went to the Cal Poly Christmas Choir Concert, which is always a beautiful experience. We also went to Gary's work Christmas party with some delicious food, fun entertainment, and even a carriage ride. (Sorry for the blurry picture, this was taken with my phone at the choir concert in the Performing Arts Center.)

Lauren and I did our annual Christmas cookie baking with Grandma, which always results in a messy kitchen and delicious treats. :)

Both kids had fun holiday events at school. Lauren's class invited the parents for the last day of school, when they sang a few songs for us and then we decorated gingerbread men together.
Jon's toddler class played a small part in the annual Christmas pageant at his school. The older kids acted out the story of Jesus' birth, and when they got to the part about the angels visiting the shepherds, his class came in wearing angel costumes. We could barely see him during the performance, but he only had to walk in and sit down for a few minutes, so he did great. :) Here he is in his classroom, anxiously pulling off his costume before mom could take a good picture.
We've had other fun experiences, including the SLO Christmas Parade and the Christmas Celebration at our church, but I seem to be forgetting my camera more these days. I actually haven't taken many pictures this season, but I'm sure I'll be making up for it on Christmas day. I'll leave you with a couple of photos of our decorated house. (I'm so happy to have a mantel to hang our stockings on this year!) Hope you are enjoying these last few days of Christmas preparation!