Dueck's Roost

And just like that, we're saying goodbye to 2017!!  Of course we had to decorate:) Have a cookie decorating station.  Play some fun family bingo! (thanks Aunt Allie for starting this fun tradition) And enjoy never-ending food and games.  Moving on!!!

And to finish off December we have ... The Christmas tie bros!! Polar Express Christmas party. Happy the Elf takes Joseph on a scavenger hunt! Cousin G's annual nativity ballet. Field trip time with lil' J!! Holiday wrestling tourneys. Family movie time @ Jumanji!! Service project!! Star Wars movie outing w/ the Leonards:-) Sure love this guy;)

After a wonderful night of celebration, we eventually managed to pull all our sleepy teenagers out of bed to open presents. Their little bro. should probably win an award for being so patient;).  Even once they made it downstairs, they were still awfully sleepy and not exactly eager to dig in to their stockings. It's funny (and a bit sad) how Christmas morning changes so much when kids start to grow up. Everyone eventually started to wake up and feel the excitement of Christmas morning ... especially Kevin maybe;)?? Joseph pretty much spent the entire day building with new Lego sets.  Before long, round 1 of grandparents began to stop in for some show n' tell.  And more games! Mae made her way out for some fun and friendship in the snow:). Before the day was over, we had to enjoy a little bit of laser tag! Round 2 of grandparents (the G-ma Loo) came by later in the evening for even more show-n-tell!! And ...

We definitely love us some Christmas Eve:-). It's such a great time for celebration!!  For us, it's all about celebrating the birth of Christ through fun and cozy time as a family, feeling grateful for the joy of a Christ-centered home, and the beauty of giving and receiving graciously and with a loving heart.  So let the celebration begin ...  Starting of course with gathering everyone together.   Eating delicious food!! Playing games!!! (like our traditional minute-to-win-it fun) (and some good-ole-Bananagrams) And opening a few presents from all the grandparents.  This year, we also managed to fit in a couple of quick family snapshots. This one's probably a lot more accurate;).