Our lives in December~ Lots of pics!!

Here's an updated post with lots of pictures as promised! Check back for a January updated with Mina's 2nd Birthday pics coming soon!

This December was Mina's first Christmas holiday season with family who loves her very much.  We tried to make the best of our situation and illnesses and did what we could to still make Christmas time fun, festive, and celebrate Christ's Birth!  In the midst of our madness here’s the fun things we managed to do.

Picking out our Christmas tree.  Look how tall it is!! Mina's 1st tree!! 

Our little Christmas angels!! Oh how these sisters love each other!!

We went to the Harn Homestead Christmas lights event. Mina is petting a horse with Aunt Danie. We got to go on a hay ride, take pictures with Santa, decorate cookies, and play some fun games. 

Mina didn't mind sitting in Santa Clauses lap... but Myla was not a big fan.  If you can tell she is sitting in her daddy's lap :)  LOL

Big Smiles!! Happy girl enjoying every minute!!

This was Myla's first day ever to leave her mama to go to any type of daycare and it about broke my heart.  She was so excited all dressed and ready with her backpack to go to Mother's Day out.  She went there for one day with her Aunt Christy and cousins because this mama was exhausted trying to take care of everything around our house, take care of my sick husband, and just keep up with the everyday things. Mina stayed at home with Mama and we got some things done and Myla had a great time (although she wouldn't nap there LOL)

Myla always loves taking care of her baby sister and holding her :)

Mina at the hospital visiting Mimi (her great grandma who was recently diagnosed with final stage of lung cancer)  Oh how her mimi adores her. Please keep her in your prayers!! She is one of my best friends in the world and I can't imagine life without her in it!! She's been told she has a year left but we're praying for a miracle!

Well December 23rd we were just about sick of being couped up in our house for weeks on end and not being able to get out due to the shingles and chicken pox so Jim loaded us all up (the girls in pajamas :) and took us out to Chickasha for the lights festival.  Since we couldn't be around people it was something perfect that we could do together as a family and the girls really enjoyed the road trip and seeing all the Christmas lights. We stopped by Jakes Ribs and Jim grabbed food to go that we ate in the truck while enjoying all the lights.

The girls in daddy's lap eating supper

Our poor babies and their chicken pox.  I am so thankful that is all over!!!

We made cookies for Jesus, Santa, and his reindeer :)  Myla loved loved this! She did such a great job cutting out her cookies and decorating them... oh yeah and eating them! Mina had some cookie dough and some cutters but within seconds it was gone.  She was a happy girl though LOL

Christmas morning at our house!  This year was the first year we didn't spend Christmas day with our families... which made me sad... although we enjoyed our time together with just us.  All the past years we spent the night at my parents and wake up altogether and the cousins all get Christmas morning together. Then after spending the morning with my family we go to Jim's parents and spend the rest of the day with his family. Well this year was the first to wake up in our own home and not do those things since the girls had the chicken pox and couldn't get around the other kids.  It was a wonderful day and we enjoyed our time together celebrating Jesus. We didn't really do anything big for Christmas as far as presents goes.... for one Jim had spent so much time off work from everything and we want to keep it a bit more simple and try to keep the focus on Christ and the reason we celebrate Christmas. Hopefully we can instill in our girls the giving rather than receiving.  Myla got a new bigger piggy bank and she wanted to give her other one to her sister.  Very sweet! Mina got letters of her name for us to put on the wall in her room!

Cute story about the ball pit. So this is the ball pit we got when we returned home from Ukraine because the girls both loved the ball pit so much in the orphanage. After having it for a couple months and constantly picking up balls I thought it was time to put it up for a bit. A friend wanted to borrow it for her daughter so she took it off our hands for a little bit.  Myla asked about that ball pit ALL the time.  Well come Christmas time my friend was sick of it at her house so I brought it back home and set it up Christmas morning.  Myla walked into the hall first thing in the morning when she woke up and I hear her little excited voice, "Mommy Annaliese brought my ball pit back!!"  She was so excited about it.  And that is what Jim and I woke up to Christmas morning :)  Oh the little things.... I'm thinking we are going to need to put toys up more often and then get them back out. It's like a whole new toy again :)

Mina's favorite light up toy we took her in Ukraine when we first met her had broken so we got another one for her for Christmas. She loves those toys!!  $3.00 at Walmart- best entertainment ever :)

In the evening Christmas day after everyone was leaving we went by my parents for a little bit to see them.  Mina in her Christmas jammies sitting on Oma's counter. Papa is making her laugh!

Decorating a gingerbread house! Well and eating all the candy :)  Mina really liked the icing.

The rest of our December was spent playing, coloring LOTS, and a ton of snuggle PJ time!