Santa At The Mall

I've been a parent for seven years and we've never once visited Santa at a mall.  This year was different.  These pictures are so wonderful, not necessarily due to facial expressions, but I consider them priceless.  I only wish we had Marshall with us, but at least we had the Hassell boys!

Rachel was nervous right from the beginning!

This Santa was a smart guy.  He showed the kids a picture of Elsa and Anna and told them they are helping in the North Pole in the Sparkle Department.  Bridget has not stopped talking about this!

Rachel's nerves got the best of her-hence she is not in a few pictures.  ;)

The only way Rachel would get on the chair was if Santa got off.  Again, his idea, clever guy!

He tried to sneak in...and this was the result!  I just love it!

A Saturday Of Christmas Fun

Saturday, December 12th, was packed full of Christmas fun for us.  

We started off with our annual gingerbread festivities.  Like last year, we only made one house, but we also cut out some gingerbread cookies so everyone could decorate something of their own as well.  It was a success.

Always a BYU theme.  :)

After that fun we cleaned up and went to our church Christmas Party, where Santa was waiting.  Marshall and Bridget were eager to sit on Santa's lap, but Rachel would have nothing to do with him. 

Rachel found her time to shine though when she joined the primary kids on the stage for a song.  She stole the show.  

If you have three free minutes, you can click here to watch cute and animated Rachel on stage.

A Festive Morning Downtown

Our playgroup met downtown one morning for a round of holiday festivities.  We began downtown at Cathedral Square Park and dropped off letters for Santa.  We really lucked out with the weather and by the end the kids were running around on the playground without coats.  

After that fun we walked a few blocks to BMO Harris Bank.  At their location on Water St. they have been setting up a fun holiday display for 43 years, so we went to check it out.  It did not disappoint, plus free candy canes!

This whole front display was moving.  The kids loved seeing all the little animals in action.

Yay for playgroup outings!

Visit From St. Nick

It is a big Wisconsin tradition to set your shoes outside your bedroom door on the night of December 5th so St. Nick can come leave some early Christmas presents.  This was actually only the second year we've celebrated St. Nick's Day, so we'll see if the kids remember it for next year.  :)

This year the kids each got a new pair of pajamas and their favorite candy.  Initially, Marshall was not happy about his gift, but when we got home from church and the girls put their pajamas on, he quickly joined in on the fun and decided he loved them.  

So many silly pictures.  Rachel's expressions just kill me.  

Silly face time...as if they weren't already being silly.

Love these three goofballs.

Holiday Train

For the first time ever the Canadian Pacific Railroad's holiday train was stopping in Wauwatosa.  Richard was working that night so I braved the crowds, bundled the kids up, and hoped for the best.  The train was awesome, all lit up and festive.

Like I said, the train was awesome...but that was about it!  We had a small encounter with a drunk man who I thought might kidnap Bridget.  Marshall was running and rolling on the grass all night long, even though I warned him against it.  Sure enough, he almost rolled right on to some dead animal.  And to top it all off, Bridget, who had been a real trooper, was freezing by the end of the night.  She cried our entire 15 minute walk back to the car and the entire way home.  We walked in the door at 9:00 pm and I was pooped!  We made some hot chocolate and popped some popcorn though and all was well again.  :)