One more Christmas post (that actually should have been the first)

Thought I was done with Christmas posts but I found this hidden folder I forgot about. We drove out to Burnet to see Main Street Bethlehem. They have a little authentic-looking town set up with actors in costumes, shops, and live animals. It's impressive and the kids liked it and even Emma got really into the acting and anticipation of finding the baby.

On the way home we stopped at the Marble Falls Trail of Lights.

The next day we drove to San Antonio and took turns doing sessions and taking the kids to the park.

 

Clever Ender

Andrew makes me smile with his creative energy. Here's a few samples:

Andrew was delayed in the bathroom as he discovered the empty toilet paper roll and blue towel was perfect as an elephant trunk spraying water. He insisted we find a way to attach it to his face and then went off to find a tail, which he found in a necktie.


Andrew set up a drive-in movie theater for his cars (which were of course arranged in perfectly straight lines and grouped by color).

He loves building all sorts of  crazy and tall towers with staircases that start and lead nowhere.

Andrew has really taken interest in and shown progression in his artwork. He devotes himself to very serious writing, drawing and coloring sessions. Here's some of my favorites;
He often likes drawing really long people with big heads and eyes but also draws characters like skeletons, pirates, monsters, and superheros.

He also has a particular interest in drawing naked people. Thankfully his drawings aren't very detailed although the "manbots" and belly buttons add a bit of humor. Hopefully this nude art will not continue past his very young years.

 

Christmas 2012

 

 

Christmas Eve

Jamie and Emma were laying around sick all day so we had to cancel our plans with our friends but we managed to pull together the traditional Cannon nativity reenactment. Jamie did the narrating between sniffles and the kids each took on double roles.
 

Looks like Joseph feels like most new dads feel.

"and they were sore afraid"

Oh look, the shepherd's brought a gift too

Can you spot the star?

Thanksgiving 2012 with Cannons

Let's see, two days after Christmas, sounds like a good day for a Thanksgiving post.

My Mom and Dad flew in to spend Thanksgiving with their Texas family, Jesse and his gang came down from Dallas, and Nate's family has been living in Cedar Park. The Liddiards (my SIL's parents) invited us to have Thanksgiving dinner with them but Jesse had sick people so they didn't even make the dinner :o(. But they came the next day and we ahd a fun weekend. We played at the park and in our favorite trees while the mommas did some Christmas shopping,

we went to the zoo, 

we took some family pics. and ate ice cream,

Nana made pj pants for all the grandkids,

we ate ar Rudy's for Jamie and Pop's birthday and went back to the house for cake and ice cream for all the November birthdays (Angie, Maisy, Jamie, and Pop and I ate for Hunter and Lindy).

So grateful for family! Thanks Mom and Dad!

The Faith of a Child

I love my sweet Weston. When I asked him what he was grateful for today he said, "that David could get better." David is his cousin who's had several surgeries and procedures in the last few months with another big one coming. I was touched that he stated it as something he was grateful for not a blessing he's asking for. It's the same in his prayers. After expressing gratitude for the blessings he has, instead of asking for blessings Weston will continue saying he's grateful for things that he's asking for like, "we're grateful that David could get better." At first I was tempted to teach him how to "properly" ask for blessings but stopped myself as I thought of the faith this child has in prayers, that he knows his Father in Heaven will answer his prayers and he is grateful to him for it.

The Avengers

We have some home teachers that always tell Jamie he looks like Hawkeye from the Avengers so when we started talking about Halloween costumes I knew exactly what Jamie should be. I had a leather jacket so I though maybe I should be Black Widow and then it became a family theme. It was fun and a hit at the ward trunk-or-treat!