A Few Final Holiday Pictures

I couldn't resist showing off a few more pictures of our precious kiddos from this holiday season. It was a really great Christmas full of wonderful moments with each child and all of our family.

5th and Final Family Christmas!!!

On Christmas day our family gathers at Martha Sue's house for lunch and piles of presents to open. It is a very relaxing day that is a much needed break for the fast pace of the holidays. Everyone watched each other open presents, the boys ran races and played hide and go seek in the backyard. The weather was perfect for outdoor games. There was also much lounging infront of the TV with our feet up on the coffee table. This is always the perfect way to end the holiday craze and eat just enough for a good Christmas Day nap.

4th Family Christmas Extravaganza!

The Wood Family has been celebrating Christmas on Christmas Eve for decades. We get together late in the afternoon and eat, eat, exchange gifts, eat, exchange more gifts and drink a little coffee before we wait for Santa to arrive. We packed the three kids up to head over to Mama's house at 3:30 on Christmas Eve for the fun to begin. There are 8 second cousins that get to play together which makes it a blast for Jacob, Jude and Grace. This year Mama and Grandaddy decided to get remote control cars for all the boys to play with on the back patio. It was such a good time and everyone got in on the fun. Grace was passed around all night from family member to family member in true princess form. Every child was given a new pair of pajamas at some point in the evening by their grandparents so, 8 children went home in new pajamas completely worn out and ready to listen for reindeer hooves on the roof. It was another fantastic family Christmas!

3rd Family Christmas!!!

It was time for our third family Christmas of the holiday season, and the kids were ready to go to Gram and Papa's new house for the first family Christmas there. Gram had decorated every room for Christmas so it certainly was a festive house! Tori and Brent (Jacob, Jude and Grace's older cousins) came into town and kept the boys going all evening long. We ate dinner and opened presents and capped the night off with the movie, "Transformers". The boys loved it. One of the best presents was a Spiderman mask that all the children ran around in, and even Gram put it on which made everyone laugh! Grace spent most of the night climbing the stairs like an old pro in her fancy dress which made it all the more adorable. It was another wonderful family Christmas for 2007.

Second Family Christmas

We had our second family Christmas this past weekend. Grandpa and MJ flew in from Wisconsin to celebrate with us and the kids. Ok, really they just came to see the kids. I've been told that they are much much cuter and more funny than Corey and I!!! It was a great visit full of family time and laughter and even old friends. The girls went shopping on Friday while Grandpa and Daddy took the boys to buy new shoes. Friday night we had a fun Hooks Family celebration, and Saturday Grandpa and MJ babysat the kids so Corey and I could go out. We capped the weekend off with lighting the Advent Candle at church on Sunday morning. It was picture perfect in every way. The kids received new chairs and we snapped pictures of them looking adorable in them.

Jacob's Christmas Choir Program

Jacob had his first Christmas choir program at church tonight. It was adorable! It was only 15 minutes, but that ended up being the perfect amount of time for three and four year olds to "wow" the audience with their sweet voices. Jacob knew all the words and did the choreography too...He is a great performer! He was excited that it was being video taped, and that we captured a hug from his good friend, Camron, on film. It is the unexpected moments that are always the best like when Jacob ran up and gave a BIG hug and kiss after his performance. That was, by far, the best part of the night for me.

First Christmas Celebration!

Grandad and Grandmoe came in town from Nashville this weekend. We had such a fantastic time with them. Lots of staying up late, and talking and laughing and talking about the kids...which I could do forever and a day. It was a great visit for everyone. This morning we opened Christmas presents and ate a big Christmas breakfast. The kids had gone to Target the day before and were able to show Grandad and Grandmoe exactly what they wanted. This tradition makes for truly happy present opening. It was a great morning and a great first family Christmas!

Santa on the Roof

Our wonderful friends, Jack and Jessica, had their annual "Santa on the Roof" party tonight. Such a treat for the kids. For those not familiar with a Santa on the Roof party, it consists of families singing (loudly) Christmas carols so that Santa can "find his way" to the host's house. Then Santa appears on the roof with bags full of presents for the kiddos present, and each present has the child's name on it (which is so exciting that Santa knows your name and knew you would be at this particular party). Jacob and Jude were super excited to go tonight. Each boy hurried up to have their bag dropped from the roof by Santa. Even Gracie Grace got a gift from Santa. It really is a magical night, and Santa stays around for the party and pictures and listens to children tell him all the things they want for Christmas. Jacob and Jude couldn not stop talking about it on the way home. Such a great way to kick off the Christmas season!

Jacob Hooks is a Star!

I'm writing this post in green to further honor our rising star, Jacob Hooks. Jacob had his first Christmas program at school today. His class (and all the other three year old classes too) sang three songs, "Bah Bah Baby Jesus", "Jesus' Birthday" and my personal favorite "The Shepherd Shuffle". Jacob smiled so big the whole time and waved at his mommy and daddy. He even did the choreography just perfect! It was such an adorable time, and Corey and I were beaming. Jacob was beaming too. His dimples were showing in rare form with all of his smiles.

Gracie Grace is 11 Months Old

Grace has transformed in the last 11 months into a walking, babbling barrel of laughs! Right now she has a big cut on her head and yesterday (on her official 11 month birthday) she had a Spiderman bandaid covering her walking injury. The boys thought that was great. I am realizing that soon I may have to invest in two types of bandaids...maybe a few with princesses on them or something. Or Gracie Grace may be completely content with a Spiderman bandaid simply because her brothers think it is so cool.