December Family Photos

My friend Gwen did a photo session with our family in December and I wanted to post a few of my favorites. She did nice work and it was a beautiful, but cold evening. 

Snowy Night

So far nothing as exciting as last year, but we experienced our first snow storm the other night.  I was starting to think a major winter storm would be Madelyn's birthday tradition, but this year it made a late appearance. I left for work just as the roads were turning white, but thankfully Daddy knows how to work a camera!

And he builds a mean snowman, too! Of course, he had help from Madelyn.

Cleaning off the truck.

"Making a spaceship," allegedly.

And of course a snow angel.

I feel cold just looking at the pictures.

Christmas with the Alders

I've heard several assertions that this year's Alder After-Christmas Party was the best one yet. I believe a major factor in that opinion is the decision not to have a second-cousins' gift exchange, which was tedious and awkward for these kids who don't really know each other to sit together while one opens a gift that the other's mother picked out.  Anyway, it was a really fun night.

Assuming everyone made it into the photo, there are 66 family members present at the party. I think that's only 61% of the Alder clan (just my grandparents' direct descendants and spouses).

Gary helped at the craft table where kids made Thank You notes.

Madelyn loved the stamping and made a couple of adorable cards!


High-fiving Uncle Randy in the Wii room (oh, there's another reason this has been voted the best party ever, duh)

Madelyn, Kristen, Jack

Running around like crazy just as we decided to get ready to go home.

All ready to go, wearing this adorable new coat, a birthday gift from Yuka (our former Japanese exchange student).

Christmas with the Goodnos

The day after Christmas Gary's parents came over for dinner and holiday fun.


Sigh. Madelyn's been having way too many treats with all this celebrating.


Grandpa Dale's ex-wife Shirley gave Madelyn some awesome little gifts, including a whole package of glow bracelets. (I know that's a little weird, but Shirley is such a sweet lady, and she and Bonnie are really good friends!)

Gary had just recently mentioned that we should get a painting smock for Madelyn, and that just happened to be one of her grandparents' Christmas gifts for her!  Seriously, we never mentioned it to them, so it was a cool coincidence.

More bath soaps and super-cute Hello Kitty socks!

Big thank you hugs!

Helping Grandma open a gift that Madelyn helped pick out. This picture was taken a few moments after she proclaimed, "It's a necklace!"

Such a cute one of these two.

Merry Christmas Grandma and Grandpa!

Christmas with the Winkels

After a delicious Christmas breakfast at home, we headed out to the Winkel homestead for the Christmas Day festivities.

Madelyn's Great Gram and Grandpa were there for part of the time, and gave all the little girls these adorable scarf and hat sets.


Don't they look cute?

Having fun with Uncle Randy

The cousins had a gift exchange. Kaden gave Madelyn the coolest little tent for her stuffed animals and a fairies look and find book.

Madelyn is very interested in Jack's gift too.

The battery-operated 4-wheelers were a huge hit all day. The rhyming puzzle game, not so much. But I'm sure he'll thoroughly enjoy it later. :)

I let Madelyn play with these lip glosses. She put on a little bit of each color.

My dad took Madelyn to look at herself in the mirror, and she looked so surprised at the result!

Surprised, and then delighted!

We had a wonderful day relaxing and enjoying Christmas with my family.

Christmas Eve

With 11 adults and 12 children now in my family, we determined that doing all of the gift opening at my parents' house Christmas morning was too chaotic.  I suggested it was time that my parents started the tradition that I remember my grandparents doing: visiting each family's home individually. We decided that Grandma and Grandpa Winkel would visit each of us on Christmas Eve to exchange gifts.

Obviously I accidentally had my camera on the wrong setting here, but I think it's such a darling photo! They are looking at the school picture and ornament we gave my parents.

Madelyn was pretty stoked about this new purple Hello Kitty.

Grandma had two beaded butterfly rings made for Madelyn!

Cutie Pie with her little Christmas haul.

After our time with my parents, we all went over to Diana and Randy's house for a Christmas Eve dinner. Diana read us "The Christmas Sweater" children's story by Glenn Beck, which was a fun coincidence because we gave the same book to Madelyn!

Mmm. A gooey s'more and hot chocolate (which spilled down the front of the white shirt, of course!)

Back at home Madelyn opened her traditional Christmas Eve pajamas, the adorableness of which you can see in this photo of her jumping into my lap.

Storybook Lane

For a Christmas-y family outing on a non-rainy night, we visited a local light display called Storybook Lane. It was cute. And interesting.  You can read more about our experience here.

Madelyn with the Winnie the Pooh display plus Aladdin in the background.

We found a nifty old-school Mickey.

Madelyn gave this cherubic caroler our donation. It's quite an extensive light display with motorized moving parts, set up on someone's private property every other year, and they welcome visitors for free.

Cozy Wagon

Madelyn wanted to snuggle up in her new wagon from G&G Goodno to watch a cartoon.

Gifts

It seems all the new photos I've taken feature Madelyn enjoying some of her new birthday presents, so voila! They're all combined into a single post of that theme.

This birthday present came all the way from Japan, from our former exchange student, Yuka. It's a gorgeous suede coat with a super-soft lining. Mmm!

Grandma Bonnie gave Madelyn a set of roll-on bath soaps. Madelyn had fun "painting" herself with them.

Daddy gets to style Madelyn's hair while she organizes her clips and necklaces into the adorable cupcake jewelry cabinet from Grandma Winkel.

Madelyn's friend Lilly sent her some really neat stickers of butterflies and princesses. Today Madelyn just put one after another on her forehead then went to look in the mirror and thought it was pretty darn hilarious.