Lamens Family: The Christmas Season

I'm finally getting around to sorting through and organizing our hundreds of pictures from the month of December and am hoping to get my last few 2015 posts complete sometime soon so we can get our blog book printed. The pictures were so fun to look through to see the joy in the girls' eyes as they really got into everything this year. I organized our advent calendar to do a special event, project, or Christmas themed activity nearly every day in December and the girls looked forward to everything with such anticipation. It was tricky to fit all the outdoor activities in in between our massive rain squalls this year, but I think we were able to do all our favorite family traditions and then some. Major picture overload, but I love that the girls love looking back at everything once I get our blog book printed.

Before taking the girls to see Santa, I snapped a few pictures of them in their cute "elf outfits" (as they called them). Lucy has always been the queen of facial expressions, it's just nearly impossible to get her to smile "normal" :)...

We went to Bellevue Nordstrom, where we've seen Santa the past few years and I wasn't sure what to expect from Lucy. Like Ella at this age, she was all talk and loved the idea of seeing Santa, but I didn't know how she would react to him in person. The few kids ahead of us in line were not having it and were in tears, but she was so excited to see him and having her big sister take the lead gave her the confidence to walk right up to him and sit on his lap. The girls each brought a letter with what they were hoping for and were excited to get a candy cane from him. After we left and walked around for a few minutes, Lucy asked if we could go back to Santa to wave good-bye. Nobody was in line at that time, so she got to go see him one more time and proceeded to dance and twirl for him (and the other Nordstrom employees :)). So happy they both enjoyed seeing him!

One of our favorite traditions is putting the girls to bed, then surprising them and getting them up to get hot cocoa at Starbucks and go look at Christmas lights in their jammies!

We took advantage of a non-rainy Friday afternoon and I took the girls downtown to see the Gingerbread houses at the Sheraton and go on the carousel. We then met up with Cody after work and went to the adorable Teddy Bear Suite at the Fairmont, had a quick bite to eat, and watched the snowfall at Pacific Place. Somehow we lucked out with no lines at any of those places so we were able to fit it all in in one fun afternoon/evening!

Star Wars themed Gingerbread houses...

The carousel...

The Teddy Bear Suite...

Snowfall at Pacific Place...

So fun to run into Jamie, Lisa and Kaylee at Pacific Place!

We love visiting Molbaks at Christmas time - beautiful displays of poinsettias and Christmas decor, and the girls love the stuffed animal displays...

Making a gingerbread house at home...

The first time we attempted Snowflake Lane with both Magnusson families, it was a rainy, yucky night - fun to be with friends, but not so fun to be standing in the rain, so we promised the girls a re-do and went back a few weeks later with just our family.
Sophie, Ella, Kaylee and Lucy...

Snowflake Lane with just our family...

I love baking and making holiday treats this time of year - the girls helped me make and frost sugar cookies and I made salted caramels to give to friends and neighbors...

Ella and Lucy both happened to have holiday field trips on the same morning. So Cody and I divided and conquered and Ella and I went to a Christmas Elf play at the Kirkland Children's Theater, and Cody and Lucy went to a Christmas Tree Farm in Duvall with her class...

Cody took Ella on their annual date to go Christmas shopping and out to dinner. Ella gets so excited to go out with just Cody and loves that he picks her up at the front door for the special date...

One of the other moms and I organized the Christmas party for Ella's pre-k class. The kids did a craft, played a game, decorated cookies, and did a book exchange..

Alison hosted a darling cookie decorating party at her house (very brave of her to have so many kids over with frosting and sprinkles involved!)...

Cody and I (and baby at 26 weeks) enjoyed a night out at Jenn and Stephen's holiday party...

Lucy had to get in on the picture taking action...

We celebrated an early Christmas with my side of our family the Sunday before Christmas while everyone was in town. So fun to have everyone together at our house to watch the Seahawks game, have dinner, and open gifts...

One of Ella's favorite traditions that she looks forward to all year long is going to see the Nutcracker at the Pacific Northwest Ballet. For the last 3 years, my mom and I have taken her to lunch and gone to the ballet - such a special tradition I hope we can keep and (someday) have Lucy join us ;). We ended up with seats in the 4th row and Ella was on the edge of her seat and engaged the entire time.

Fun to see the new sets, designs and costumes they did this year. Ella loved that one of her favorite book characters, Olivia, was included, as the illustrator of the Olivia books also did the sets/designs of the ballet...

Treats waiting for us at intermission...

Ella has been asking to go ice skating again for awhile, and David and Emily were kind of enough to take her so I didn't have to balance on skates with my big 'ol belly :). We went to Redmond Town Center and David, Emily and Ella had the whole rink to themselves. Lucy patiently watched and got to ride on the carousel afterwards...