Pinterest, you've done it again!

Well. That was a bit of an unexpected blogging break!  I honestly had every intention of spending a little more time around here until Indiana weather threw me a curve ball.  That happens sometimes.  Last Sunday (lots of pictures - and video - to come!) we had a very expected snow storm.  What we didn't expect was so much snow ans such frigid temperatures that it would cause college campuses to close and for local schools to still be closed as of Thursday.  That stuff never happens here!  

So. That's why I've been absent.  And because of that, I have to backtrack a little and do some posts that have been sitting in my drafts for some time now. Christmas.  I know, just keep the celebrations going.  But I don't want to forget about these and miss them. So now that everyone keeps talking about the snow, let's go back and talk about Christmas a little more, shall we?! ;)

So. As you can see in the title of this post, it is Pinterest-related!  One of my favorite websites of all time.  I'm sure you've noticed by now.  It is just full of so many ideas and for me it is truly inspiring and gives me lots of ideas.  Gets those creative juices flowing!  Here are a couple of ideas that I saw online and decided to put in place at our house this year. I'm so excited and I'm actually thrilled with how it all turned out.  I'll be doing the same next year!

Now I do remember as a kid being able to open one gift on Christmas Eve... but it all depended on which one you picked...it could have bee a package of socks or it could have been something really cool. So, in keeping with the Christmas Eve one gift tradition, here's where we welcome the Christmas Eve Box.

After bath time on Christmas Eve, we told Jackson that there was something new and special that had appeared under the Christmas tree in his room. He was SO excited to go and check it out!  Here are the treats that are included in the Christmas Eve box:

- new Christmas pajamas to wear that night

- a new Christmas/Winter themed movie to watch before bed

- a new Christmas/Holiday themed book to red before bed

In my later Christmas posts, you'll see the joy from opening this gift.  Makes this momma's heart swell.  I'd say that this is a tradition we'll hang on to!

This next idea may be one of my favorite new things to incorporate at Christmas time. Only giving your child (because I only have one so far!) 4(ish) gifts for Christmas.  And not only did I love the idea before putting it into action, I'm especially loving it now because our kid got so.much.stuff. from the rest of the family. There was no reason for us to spend a fortune. We still need to find places to put all of his new toys. That boy is loved something fierce!  We are so thankful for our generous family, the new toys have helped to keep us busy on these days being snowed in!

Anyway, back to the 4 gifts... the idea is to get your child:

- Something you want.

- Something you need.

- Something to wear.

- Something to read.

So here are the gifts that we (Santa, obviously) brought our little man this year!

Fisher-Price Imaginext Mega T-Rex

Fisher-Price Imaginext Apatosaurus Dino

Mitten Clips

Outfit from Old Navy. Not pictured: new hat (a favorite at our house!), long-sleeved tee and sweatpants.

Several "How Do Dinosaurs Say..." Books and a couple of others as well. 

With all of that said, I'm thrilled with how these ideas turned out.  Jackson was happy, our bank account is happy and as a family, we really enjoyed our time together. Watching your child experience the magic of Christmas is something that I never really thought about when becoming a parent.  It is so cool.  But we'll save that gush for another post!  

Christmas will be sticking around just a little bit longer around here...so bear with me! After all of this holiday excitement coming to an end, what will we talk about next?!