Another Christmas Tradition!

I thought I would share another tradition that has been around since Griffin was a toddler. When it was just him he had this banner that had 24 little bags on it. He could open  up one each day to count down til Christmas. In the bags were $ or candy. Over the years, we outgrew the bags. I decided we needed a new fun way to count down so I came up with this idea. 

Each year I make a Santa out of paper plates, cotton balls, construction paper, tape and markers. To make this Santa you take 2 paper plates, cut one in half and tape it to the other paper plate so it makes a pocket(It should be sticking out.). Then decorate to make it look like a Santa. Write the numbers 1-24 on the paper plate cut in half. We glue a cotton ball on each day to count down until Christmas. When you reach day 24 Santa will have a full grown beard. We are just 11 days away.

Now you could just stop there but I like to add a little adventure and excitement to our Santa. Inside the pocket of our Santa are 24 pieces of paper that have a special treat written on them. The kids get to pull 1 piece of paper out each day. Sometimes the prize is fulfilled that day or saved for another day. This past Saturday the kids turned in their piece of paper that had this written on it...........

They were so excited!

I think Griffin was just glad to be eating....

 I try to add at least 1 or 2 new treats each year. Breakfast in bed was a new one this year and it was a huge hit. It will definitely make it into Santa's beard again next year. 

Here are a few of the other prizes usually scene...........

Good for a hug.

Good for a kiss.

Good for hot chocolate.

Good for a family movie.

Good for staying up late.

Good for your choice for supper.

Good for a night of riding to look at lights.

Good for 1 item at the dollar tree.

Good for a friend to spend the night.

Good for a family game.

Good for a high five.

Good for a treat at the basketball game.

and many more.

As you can see many of the treats are free. You do not have to do anything expensive. Just think of things that would be consider treats for your kids.

I even took it a step further and use it in my classroom this year. I choose 1 child per day who has shown good behavior to draw a treat from Santa's beard. Here the treats would be something like....

You can play with play dough.

You get to sit in my chair.

You get to be the teacher.

You get to have a special snack.

The kids like this because they get to do these things while the rest of the class is doing work.

If I had my wish, my kids would never grow up and want to do this the rest of their life! Wouldn't that just make a lot of mothers happy?

Christmas traditions...

I thought I would share with you a Weed family tradition.

 Our Christmas Trees.....

Each child has a Christmas tree in his/her room.They get to decorate their  tree by using their own ornaments. They are given a new ornament to add each year. The ornaments are chosen based on what was a favorite from the past year. Each ornament is recorded in a journal and will be given to them once they are on their own or married.

Ella's

Laney's

Griffin's

The kitchen tree

The family tree

I think trees that are themed are so pretty but I have to tell you I love our tree. It is a tree that is filled with memories. Most of the ornaments on our tree tell a story or were given to us by special people. Maybe next year I can add a themed tree in the office.

GRRRRRRRR!

What????

Oh! That is just the sound of the fierce Auburn Tigers!

Literally, 2 days before the SEC Championship game my sister got me a ticket for my birthday( Thank you again, Rebecca!). I am so glad I went. There is nothing like being in the stands when your team wins the SEC Championship game!!!!!!

Let me rewind and give you a little history for those of you who may not know  I am an Auburn fan and my husband is a die hard South Carolina fan. So it got a little competitive around our house  a  few days before the game. 

There was a lot of final score predictions, a little ragging, a little aggravation...

and even a few " We're going to kick your tails!"

We both cheered for our teams on opposite sides of  the stadium( at least for the first half). My ticket was in the AU section and his in the USC section. I was able to sit with him after the half but did not get to cheer as loud( It is hard when you are 1 of 3 orange fans in the midst of  black and crimson.). Carmel was sweet though. He leaned over one time and said, "You can yell for your team".

Now, I do have to stop and say that I am sorry it was my husbands team who lost. He was so excited to see the Gamecocks playing in the Ga Dome. Needless to say he was NOT happy with the results. My philosophy about football......it is not always about who is the best but  who shows up and is ready to play. 

A few shots from after the game.

Just so you know.......no matter who won we still love each!

Thanksgiving 2010

We headed to South Carolina last Wednesday to spend Thanksgiving with Carmel's parents. I do not have any pictures from that day because we were very lazy day and  stayed in our pajamas. That is......... until later that night when it was time to get ready for Black Friday or should I say Black Thursday. In years past I have gone to bed ready so all I have to do is brush my teeth and head on out at 3:30 in the morning. This year I was brave........I pulled an all nighter! My sister in law and I headed to Toys R Us at 9:00 pm to score some deals. They were very well prepared for the mass gaggle of people unlike the next store. I was planning to hit the hay once I returned back to the house but Carmel was going to Walmart for a 12:01 deal. Since we have never done a Black Friday together( He is more of a get in and get out kind of shopper. So not my style!), I decided to go with him. Just like last year( with Griffin) it is nice to take a male. They can stand in the long line while I shop! Soon after we arrived at Walmart, I realized I could have done without going there. I did not know every rude person in South Carolina would be at this particular Walmart. Needless to say, I joined Carmel's style of shopping here. After dropping off 2 shoppers, Griffin and I headed back out. I don't think Griffin was ready for the all night shopping extravaganza!  He passed out after Target. That was only our 3rd store. We still had 5 more to check off the list!

As you probably can guess, I came home and slept the rest of the day. After Auburn beat Alabama( War Eagle!), We went to see the Christmas lights at Saluda Shoal's Park.

The next day we headed to North Georgia for the big Parker Family Thanksgiving Reunion.

It was another wonderful Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanking God today and everyday for all my blessings!

Dribble,Dribble...Shoot,Shoot....

Take that ball to the hoop, hoop!

My how that chant takes me back in time that seems so long ago. No I am not talking about the 1 and half years I cheered but the time I spent playing basketball for ACA. I have so many wonderful memories of the sports I played throughout my school days. Now.... I am the parent who sits in the stands and cheers for my kids( No I am not as loud as my dad was but we have only had 1 game).

Griffin has played basketball before but never with his school. He had his first game last week.

I was so excited when I found out Laney wanted to play. She has not shown much interest  for sports. She tried t-ball.....played more with the sand than the ball. She loved gymnastics but it is just not convenient to start back up right now. We can now add basketball to the list. I don't think I have ever seen her so excited. I think she would wear her jersey everyday if they let her. 

She still has a lot to learn but definitely has the motivation factor!

The team is 3rd - 6th grade so she is the youngest. Many of the other girls already know the basics. Laney will have to learn that she can move away from the spot the coach put her.......

or when you get the ball to shoot quickly don't wait for the girl to get in your face and then decide.

Oh...There is rule #1 you have to dribble not carry the ball down the court.

Who knows with enough practice and playing time.......she may as good as her mother was!

Disney Princess On Ice

Last Saturday we went to Macon to watch Disney Princess On Ice. I have never taken the girls to anything like that because I thought it was always very pricey. I was so excited to find out that the military had a special for $12 a ticket. Here's a little tip: If you are close enough to buy your ticket from the box office, then do. We saved an additional $7 per person by not buying through ticketmaster.com or over the phone.  In the beginning, I thought I would take the girls out for mommy/daughter day but to my surprise their daddy wanted to go also. I tried to convince Griffin to go but he wanted no part of the whole princess adventure. 

All the princesses were there.......Jasmine, Mulan, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and for the grand finale Cinderella. 

During the second half they told the story of Cinderella finding her Prince and their wedding. All the other princesses and their beaus came to the wedding.

There were even a few other guests that made their appearance.

Laney must have seen a commercial about Toy Story 3 on ice because she kept asking when is Woody and Buzz coming out. 

It was a wonderful day except for the fact that Griffin was missing!