Unfortunately, this year we caught "The Christmas Crud." We obviously have no immunity for the kind of yucky stuff that is circulating here. Over the month of Decemeber, Brenna caught a stomach bug, a cough, and then a cold. We did have a couple of uncomfortable days that were filled with kitty snuggles and lots of movies and computer games. Luck for us she always bounces back quickly.
The first Christmas event came with the Girls Alive Christmas Tea. The girls got to dress up for a elegant evening of hot tea and games. Brenna was so excited about the event that she asked if we could do something "special" with her hair to go with her "special" dress. I was shocked! This from a child who barely lets me brush her hair in the morning. So we curled her hair for the very first time and she was so gorgeous! The church's fellowship hall was transformed in to a beautiful dinning room with white linen table cloths and draped chairs. The girls were served with real porcelain tea cups and saucers that they got to take home as a gift. Brenna didn't care for the hot tea and drank water from her tea cup instead. She had a great night and it was a wonderful event for the girls!
Our next event was Christmas on the Farm at Canatara Park. We met up with some friends and enjoyed the animals, crafts, and foods.
Chestnuts roasting on an open fire! We didn't like them! They kind of tasted like potato!
Then began the marathon of Christmas programs. Brenna chose to participate in the our churches Christmas program called "The Nightshift Before Christmas" which was set in a dinner in Bethlehem on the night of Christ's birth. This was a big commitment since it required 12 straights weeks of practice, held each Sunday morning before church service. Brenna was a part of the children's choir. She's on the top row, third kid from the left.
Brenna also participated in the school's production of Candy Cane Lane. Auditions were held for all speaking, singing, and dancing parts. Brenna chose to audition and sang Jesus Loves Me for her audition piece. She was very excited that she was chosen and performed her first singing solo in front of an audience! There were two shows for this production. Brenna wasn't even the slightest bit nervous on opening night and she did a great job! We were so proud of her!
One thing I love about our school is the togetherness of the kids at all ages. It's so great to see the big ones helping the little ones. At the end of last year we had a school swim party. So, keeping with that "togetherness" theme the school decided instead of a individual class Christmas parties, they sponsored a family school skate and rented out the RBC Center rinks and celebrated with an ice skating party. Brenna is getting better on skates. She gave up the walker and tried to stay up on her own. There were a lot of wipe outs but her friends were great and stuck with her in trying to teach her how to skate. Also she really liked the zamboni!
We didn't bring a lot of decorations with us. My 12 foot tree definitely did not make the trip. I bought a 7 foot tree and put it up on Thanksgiving Day since Jacob was at work and Brenna was in school. We did bring Brenna's pink tree and put it up in her room, but we didn't bring any outdoor decorations. So the house wasn't as festive as it usually is. Still, Brenna created a few homemade Christmas crafts and we had fun decorating all the same.
Also, we had a lot more time on our hands to do the things that we never had time to get around to before. Like building our first ever ginger bread house! Brenna did such a great job decorating it and I couldn't believe how cute it turned out. Still, I don't think we'll be making this an official Christmas tradition since it took nearly 3 hours to make and then another hour to clean up.
We enjoyed another first when we made our very own Santa cookies on Christmas Eve. Every year we've always used some of the many Christmas cookies that have been gifted to us from neighbors and friends. This year we made them ourselves and had a great time decorating them!
After finishing up the cookies and confirming that everything was in order for Santa's visit, we braved the weather and rode around Sarnia to see the Christmas lights. The saw the Celebration of Lights, which is a lighted Christmas display located on the riverfront in Centennial Park, then we made our way across town to the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners of the Sarnia Area Christmas Light Contest. After we got back home, we decided to let Brenna open a few gifts from family. Mawmaw and Pawpaw gave her window markers, so by the time she went to bed all our windows were decorated!
Part of Brenna's Christmas gift from us was tickets to see Wild Kratts Live. It's a PBS show hosted by zoologist and biologist Chris and Martin Kratt and is full of amazing animal facts. The live show came to Windsor, Ontario which is just across the river from Detroit. So two days after Christmas we packed up and had a mini-getaway. We used the tunnel to cross from Detroit back into Canada. We had some extra time before the show so we stopped off and enjoyed the riverfront park across from the theater.
Downtown Detroit as seen from Canada! It closer than you thought, right!
Wild Kratts Live!
After the show, we took the tunnel back to Detroit to enjoy Wild Lights at the Detroit Zoo. The lights were amazing. There were more than 5 million LED lights throughout the zoo. The education center was open and we watched the Polar Express 4-D show, complete with real snow inside the theater. They also had ice carving, smores stations, and hot chocolate and popcorn along the lighted trail. It was a beautiful event to see.
The rest of our getaway was spent enjoying the indoor hotel pool and shopping at the Sommerset Collection where Brenna burned through some of her Christmas money at Build-A-Bear.
The rest of our holiday included a Kid's Christmas Party sponsored by Imperial, a botched bowl game for Mississippi State, a special note to the tooth fairy after Brenna swallowed her loose tooth in her sleep, and in general a lack of snow. No white Christmas here. It was a bit disappointing since Santa brought a snow sled, a snow scooter, a snow ball maker, and a snow brick builder, but no snow.
Over the course of the holiday, we experienced rain, hail, ice, and sleet. Finally, on our last day of Christmas break, just before dark, the white stuff started to fall. Within the hour, we were covered enough that Brenna could at least try out her new snow scooter. It was a perfect ending to the holiday!
2014 has definitely brought about a lot of changes for this family. Looking back over the year, I count the many blessing that God has provided to us in making this move and the adjustments that have come with it. This has most certainly been a lesson in faith. God's plan is perfect, even when we don't understand it. Now it's time to look forward to the adventures of 2015! Happy New Year!
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