Christmas Day (#2)!

 Waiting for all the adults to arrive so we can finally open our stockings!

 Santa and her elf!

 Still waiting...

 DIG IN...

 Now time to play with everything!  James doing a little science kit.

 

Brennen enjoying some painting.

  

All the kids got puppets and they played with those all week!

  This lion is enjoying a little of James' science kit...

 

  

Kellen's Favorite!

 

 So much work to unwrap, we have to cool off in the pool!  Uncle Ross gets surrounded!

 

Relaxing poolside.

 The sun goes down on another great Christmas! Thanks Jim and Marilyn!

 

Christmas Eve!

Ok, Santa has brought the PJ's!  Time to get them on and get the required photo.  One problem, Brennen is very upset that he did not get green PJ's.  How could you, Santa?

 Add in Cousin Jackie (baby Maya Bronwen was already asleep)!

 Time for bed Lotta!  Uncle Matt and Lotta show me what they think about that!

At last!

After a pretty rough day of travel and an extra long sleep in, we are ready to enjoy!  However, we had no suits, since all our bags were lost.  Lucky for Skylar, she packed a suit in her carry-on, the boys swam in their underwear (except for James and Brennen who had decided they did not need to wear underwear on the flight over) and there was a little suit lying around at grandmas for Lotta!

Traveling to Arizona

12 when are we going to be theres, 11 melt downs, 10 hours of delays, 9 i hate yous, 8 lost bags, 7 crappy sandwiches, 6 spilled drinks, 5 tired children, 4 lost toys, 3 trips through security,2 fed up parents and one horrible traveling day (sung in tune to the 12 days of Christmas) !

Christmas #1

The kids were very surprised that Santa came last night!  But, now that he has come, DADDY please get up!

 

 The kids all got swim gear in their stockings.  I am not sure who was happier--Lotta with her suit that matches her sisters

 OR.... Brennen with his new pair of goggles.

https://thedeanslife.shutterfly.com/7997

 Brennen, James and Skylar all got new bikes (for some Triathlons this summer)!

 Kellen decided at our last swim meet that he wanted a Speedo.  He kept trying to roll his jammers up to a speedo style.  So, he got one and decided to wear it the rest of the day!

 The kids' Swedish cousins gave them all their own mugs.  (Huge hit!--now they are mad at me if they are not clean in time for the next meal)  Charlotta tried to pack her mug in her carry-on bag.  Good thing I found it before it broke!

 Brennen loves sports clothes, so he got a lot of those and he put them on right away.  All the boys were happy to have their own remote control car!

 As always, the kids get a lego set for Christmas...

 

and Skylar got right to work!

Hee hee hee!

 

 I told the kids that we were not going to celebrate our family Christmas until after we got back from Arizona, but tricky little Mama is going to surprise them!  I sure hope they actually sleep in since they don't realize that Santa is coming:)

Charlotta's Christmas Program

 My kids do not seem to like performing in their preschool programs.  Charlotta would not sing one word of the songs that she has been singing everyday in the car to and from school.
 https://thedeanslife.shutterfly.com/7996
  However, when they got the bells out, she decided that it was time to do her part:)

https://thedeanslife.shutterfly.com/7998

Chorus Concert

https://thedeanslife.shutterfly.com/7989

For some reason, it just takes forever to upload videos to blogger, so here is the link to her chorus concert.

December Days

The Christmas tree is up and ready for some presents under it!  Lotta is in the Christmas spirit with her present bow hair ties.  Put them together and you have one cute Christmas Elf!

 

 Tonight, Skylar had her second jazz band concert.  She was asked by her band director to step up to the 7th (she's in 6th) grade jazz band because they are short on instruments.  So, she has been waking up early (6:30) for jazz band four mornings a week.  She has been doing so well, that she actually got asked to do a solo in their concert, ahead of a lot of the 7th graders!

See her solo below:

https://thedeanslife.shutterfly.com/7995

The Amazing Pizza Machine

The kids just love this place.  It has rides, games, all you can eat food...it just goes on forever!  Every time we are in Omaha for a swim meet, we have to go here for a meal.

Skylar and James drive the cars..

And Kellen goes around and around and around....

Unfortunately, I am on deck coaching, so I never seem to get pictures of the kids swimming anymore!  I will work on that:)

Skylar's Christmas concert

Skylar is involved in band, 2 jazz bands and chorus.  This is her first concert of the year.  Her first concern?  Finding us in the crowd.

 

   Here she is playing for the regular band.

 Here she is for the jazz band.

 And here she is singing in the chorus.  And no, that is not pee down her legs.  Water was spilled on her during the set changes.

https://thedeanslife.shutterfly.com/7988