Family Photo 2012

I decided our photo location would be at Corona Del Mar.  Sienna's friend took this picture for us.  After looking through a multitude of photos, I chose this one for our Christmas cards.

I wish my daughter would smile more.  She never seems to be happy, anymore.  Most of the time, she was off frolicking with her friend.  

We ended up stopping at some park dedicated to the Military and it was set up for Veteran's Day.  There were many American Flags lining the walkway.  It was a little bittersweet.  I was just glad I was with my family.  

It's rare we all get together anymore.  My daughter being a teenager is too cool for us.  My sons are so different in age, one liking being home on the internet all day and the other loves running around outdoors.  Their dad works a lot.  So do I.  We all hardly see each other, anymore.

Christmas Pickle

I saw this Christmas Pickle at the local Dollar Tree.  It came with a little description on how to use it.  I felt like it was a cute new tradition to add to our household.  Even after everybody is grown up, I am still going to have the Christmas pickle around.  It's so cute and quirky.

Supposedly, it is a German tradition, though none of my German friends have ever heard of it.  I wonder if it is more German-American?  Or something new in Germany? 

Either way, it states you should hide the pickle in the tree before the kids come to the tree to open their gifts.  The first child to find the pickle can open their gift first or receive a reward, be it money or a treat.  How neat is that?

Personally, I like this way better than Elf on a Shelf.

An Anderson Christmas

 

Normally, Christmas would have been spent with my side of the family.  This particular Christmas was spent in San Bernardino at my children's father Mike's sister Sarah's home.  After gifts were opened and trash was thrown away, they pulled out Guitar Hero and Karaoke, and the kids, along with their Aunt Sarah played games.  

Feeling Festive

"I heard the bells on Christmas Day / Their old familiar carols play." — Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 

 I felt really bad.; We haven't had a pretty tree in a while. My son Christopher still believes in Santa and we must always have a tree for Santa to put the gifts under. To me, this tree isn't as pretty as I wanted it to be. 

My first complaint is that it's so small. The ornaments were bought in haste, and they were cheap...and they certainly look cheap. This year, I have really been scouring Pinterest and I am in love with minimalist home decor, particularly the color white. It definitely does not look good to me for Christmas. I still like red, gold, and green...and silver bells. 

All that matters is that Christopher is happy with our Christmas tree. And he wanted to take a picture to show me how he's the same size as the tree. 

 After choosing to display the Christmas cards and putting up a tiny faux tree, thus, I took my youngest child, Christopher, for a walk around the neighborhood. We really enjoyed looking at all the holiday lights on everyone's homes and yards. He loved how festive the neighborhood was.

Christmas Shows and Cocoa

I saw a family-friendly event was available for tonight via Facebook.  I was excited so I reminded my whole family we were going to it. 

I dragged my kids' father, Mike, out to a Christmas show.  He really didn't want to go, but I wanted to have a lasting memory with my family.  My daughter is always trying to go with her friends and party.  My older son is always cooped up in his bedroom, playing video games. My youngest son is always excited about doing things and going places outside of the house.

I really wanted my kids to experience a more meaningful Christmas show than the concert we attended.  This one was more religious.  My kids seemed to enjoy themselves, even though it felt like I was pulling teeth out of the older two and their dad.  The Christmas show ended with hot chocolate.  I also ran into my childhood friend, Natascha, but did not get a photo.