Grab a drink and a snack because this is going to be an extraordinarily long post recapping the entire month of December for us!
FIRST SNOW
We got our first snow on December 1st. We had taken Jonathan to school and the little ones asked to play out in the snow after we'd returned home. I figured it would be a short lived adventure outside for them, but why not!
I'm not sure that Matthew would remember the snow from last year. He was barely walking and I don't know that he actually was outside all that much for "play."
Elizabeth, of course, is an old pro! Our kiddos love to use the table as a place to play when there is snow around.
I think they both loved tasting the snow!
Later in the month, we were in the van and Elizabeth said, "Do you know what snow tastes like?" A few second pause and in her best Rhino (Hamster from Bolt movie voice) impersonation she said, "it tastes goooood!!" She is a certified nut and we just love the fun she brings to our daily life!
Matthew looked like a blue blob, but a very cute blue blob! Even though there was just a dusting of snow, they were enjoying it fully!DECORATING FOR CHRISTMAS
Since we were away for Thanksgiving, we didn't get to decorate for Christmas until the following weekend. Last year, we purchased an artificial tree after Christmas, so we didn't have to go find a live one for this year. It was a little sad to not have a live tree (it's the first year we haven't had one!) but at the same time, oh so much easier!!
Matthew was excited to open up his ornaments. The kids have little trees in their rooms they get to decorate and put all their ornaments on. It was nice this year to have a boy tree and a girl tree.
Jonathan checking out all of his treasures! Amazingly, in just a few short years, these kiddos have accumulated a lot of ornaments. We had to buy new storage containers this year to house all their ornaments. We did purchase storage that can be expanded (it can have more levels snapped together) with the thought that eventually, we will send these along with the kiddos when they leave (sad thought, I know!!!)
David and Jonathan decorating our tree in the living room. So, as I mentioned, this was purchased after Christmas and not a lot of money was spent on it. I referred to this as our anorexic tree. It was tall and slender with branches starting a couple feet off the ground. It did make it easy to get lots of presents under the tree vs. around the tree as we'd done in the past years.
Lots of decorating helpers!
DANCING
Matthew was excited to open up his ornaments. The kids have little trees in their rooms they get to decorate and put all their ornaments on. It was nice this year to have a boy tree and a girl tree.
Jonathan checking out all of his treasures! Amazingly, in just a few short years, these kiddos have accumulated a lot of ornaments. We had to buy new storage containers this year to house all their ornaments. We did purchase storage that can be expanded (it can have more levels snapped together) with the thought that eventually, we will send these along with the kiddos when they leave (sad thought, I know!!!)
David and Jonathan decorating our tree in the living room. So, as I mentioned, this was purchased after Christmas and not a lot of money was spent on it. I referred to this as our anorexic tree. It was tall and slender with branches starting a couple feet off the ground. It did make it easy to get lots of presents under the tree vs. around the tree as we'd done in the past years.
Lots of decorating helpers!DANCING
Elizabeth has begun the dress-up phase. I used to let Caroline dress up whenever she wanted as I knew the "phase" wouldn't last forever. Caroline will still dress up occassionally, but I'm so thankful that I let her enjoy it while she was little. David loves his girls and loves it even more when they want him to be their prince! I find it interesting that Caroline's favorite dress-up character was Cinderella (she would even "loose" her slipper for her Prince Daddy to find!) while Elizabeth is partial to Sleeping Beauty.
I would have to say that Jonathan and Elizabeth are the closest of our siblings at this point in time. Probably due to the fact they have the most playtime together. I love seeing how Elizabeth just adores Jonathan and he, of course, loves being the oldest kiddo during the mornings when Caroline has gone off to school. Matthew still tries to keep up, but mostly is just tagging along behind.
TABLES OF CHRISTMAS
A special event and girl time for Caroline and me. It's hard for me to believe how much she has changed over this past year and is not longer a little kiddo, but is blossoming into a beautiful young girl. Our conversations are changing and she is maturing. It's sad to see some of the innocence being lost as I've had to discuss different topics with her. I love, at times, that she is very much like me (driven, perfectionist, etc.) but also it's frustrating too (she's stubborn too!)
BIRTHDAYS
I would have to say that Jonathan and Elizabeth are the closest of our siblings at this point in time. Probably due to the fact they have the most playtime together. I love seeing how Elizabeth just adores Jonathan and he, of course, loves being the oldest kiddo during the mornings when Caroline has gone off to school. Matthew still tries to keep up, but mostly is just tagging along behind.
TABLES OF CHRISTMASAn annual women's event at our church is Tables of Christmas. There are over 100 tables all beautifully decorated, food, a speaker and a wonderful time of fellowhip. Caroline and I attended again and sat at our dear friend's table. Caroline is actually closer in age to Grace, the younger of the Ruble girls, but she is thick as theives with Julia. These girls are growing up so quickly and I love to see the relationships developing as well.
A special event and girl time for Caroline and me. It's hard for me to believe how much she has changed over this past year and is not longer a little kiddo, but is blossoming into a beautiful young girl. Our conversations are changing and she is maturing. It's sad to see some of the innocence being lost as I've had to discuss different topics with her. I love, at times, that she is very much like me (driven, perfectionist, etc.) but also it's frustrating too (she's stubborn too!)
BIRTHDAYSHaving a December birthday was great for my parents, since we were all "tax babies", but for me it's just another activity in an already busy time of year. As I've gotten older, it's really just another day, but I'm trying to be better about making it special for my kiddos. David's uncle also has a December birthday, so we celebrate them together with the whole family. It was a bittersweet celebration this year as we were missing several family members due to moving -- some to Virginia, one to heaven.
Blowing out the candles. I think UD was giving me the go-ahead to blow out the candles.
GINGERBREAD HOUSE
We've started another Christmas tradition of making a Gingerbread house together. Now, don't think I'm going all Martha Stewart on you....I do buy the kits and we just frost and decorate them. After I'd already got this one, I found another kit with several small houses. I think we'll try that next year as we had a hard time agreeing on how to decorate just one house.
Caroline with her side partially done.
Jonathan with his side.
SCHOOL PARTIES
Caroline and her friend Shawna.
There also was snowball cornhole -- thankful for the free Home Depot kids workshops that we had kid-size cornhole games! We also had a Bingo station, a Mad Lib station, cookie decorating and doing a game on the Smart Board.
Caroline's party is earlier in the day, so I was able to sneak into Jonathan's class and got there in time to see him with Santa. He was pretty excited to see the Big Guy. (NOTE: Caroline found out this year about Santa and was pretty cute as she'd play along for the little ones.) 
Matthew and Griffin sliding like penguins down a simulated iceberg.
Jonathan hanging out with me while others took on the giant Yule slide in the lobby.
The shirt says it all....SWEET! Elizabeth was "skating" in her socks on a mock frozen pond.
After lunch, I took the girls and Matthew to the Barbie exhibit. Since I'd already lost him twice, I wasn't about to let him out of sight again -- or risk someone else loosing him! Elizabeth and Mandy strike a pose on the catwalk. They are visions!! Not sure if modelling is in their futures...
I loved the way both kiddos were trying to figure out the camera!
We opted to not see Santa here as we figured we see him in a couple of days when we headed to the State Museum. We did pose for a quick picture with the lovely Mrs. Claus.
We headed to the State Museum on Monday with the Croissants. It's been tradition for us to visit here together as part of Indy's 12 Days of Free Chrismas activities. We've outgrown the sleigh and Caroline wanted to be a reindeer for us this year.
We were able to ride the train two times before we headed to see a performance of "Sam the Snowflake." We were going to see Santa, but they had a sign posted that said you could not take pictures inside with Santa. So, I was not going to pay an outrageous sum for pictures with Santa, so we passed on visiting him this year.
Our kiddos were so excited to be able to spend time with their cousins since they had moved away this summer. We'd been very spoiled by having them live close and getting to see them all the time.
The boy cousins in their matching Colts fleeces.... Matthew will be wearing these for YEARS!!!
Matthew got a sled! It would be the first sled we've owned -- how can that be?!? All the kiddos were pretty excited about it. Thankfully, Grammy was able to find another one a few days later, so hopefully we won't have as much drama over the sleds -- now we just need more snow!
The men in their Santa apparel.
The girl cousins in their matching jammies. This happened to be the year of Jammies for our kiddos. Caroline received 3 pair, Jonathan 4 pair, Elizabeth 3 pair and Matthew got 5 pair! One thing is for sure -- they will look good while sleeping!! 
CHRISTMAS AT THE ZOO/WHITE RIVER GARDENS
Blowing out the candles. I think UD was giving me the go-ahead to blow out the candles.GINGERBREAD HOUSE
We've started another Christmas tradition of making a Gingerbread house together. Now, don't think I'm going all Martha Stewart on you....I do buy the kits and we just frost and decorate them. After I'd already got this one, I found another kit with several small houses. I think we'll try that next year as we had a hard time agreeing on how to decorate just one house.
Caroline with her side partially done.
Jonathan with his side.SCHOOL PARTIES
As it turned out, there was only one opportunity to be at Caroline's class parties this year. I volunteered to be the party planner for Caroline's Christmas party in her class. We had several stations set up for the kiddos and it was lots of fun!
We made snowman ornaments where they used their finger prints to make the snowman. These turned out cute!
Caroline and her friend Shawna.
There also was snowball cornhole -- thankful for the free Home Depot kids workshops that we had kid-size cornhole games! We also had a Bingo station, a Mad Lib station, cookie decorating and doing a game on the Smart Board.
Caroline's party is earlier in the day, so I was able to sneak into Jonathan's class and got there in time to see him with Santa. He was pretty excited to see the Big Guy. (NOTE: Caroline found out this year about Santa and was pretty cute as she'd play along for the little ones.)CHILDREN'S MUSEUM
Our school got out before any of the other schools in the area, so I thought it would be good to take advantage of a day that may not be horribly busy and go to the Children's Museum. We went with a couple of our friends. Even with extra eyes, I lost Matthew twice during our time there!
Matthew and Griffin sliding like penguins down a simulated iceberg.
Jonathan hanging out with me while others took on the giant Yule slide in the lobby.
The shirt says it all....SWEET! Elizabeth was "skating" in her socks on a mock frozen pond.
After lunch, I took the girls and Matthew to the Barbie exhibit. Since I'd already lost him twice, I wasn't about to let him out of sight again -- or risk someone else loosing him! Elizabeth and Mandy strike a pose on the catwalk. They are visions!! Not sure if modelling is in their futures...
I loved the way both kiddos were trying to figure out the camera!
We opted to not see Santa here as we figured we see him in a couple of days when we headed to the State Museum. We did pose for a quick picture with the lovely Mrs. Claus.STATE MUSUEM - CELEBRATION CROSSING
We headed to the State Museum on Monday with the Croissants. It's been tradition for us to visit here together as part of Indy's 12 Days of Free Chrismas activities. We've outgrown the sleigh and Caroline wanted to be a reindeer for us this year.
We were able to ride the train two times before we headed to see a performance of "Sam the Snowflake." We were going to see Santa, but they had a sign posted that said you could not take pictures inside with Santa. So, I was not going to pay an outrageous sum for pictures with Santa, so we passed on visiting him this year.
Our kiddos were so excited to be able to spend time with their cousins since they had moved away this summer. We'd been very spoiled by having them live close and getting to see them all the time.We took up quite a bit of the entire row for the perfomance. It was a bit quirky and I'm glad it was free! The younger kids seemed to enjoy it. After this, Caroline and I had to leave to get her to the dentist. Upon our return, we thought we'd ride the train again and possibly see Santa -- and figure out a way to get pictures on our camera. Unfortunately, the parking garage was FULL and there was no where nearby to park. So, we loaded all the kids in our van and headed back to our house.
SNOW!!!
We had a fantastic packing snow that fell and we didn't have to worry about going to school -- or going anywhere for that matter! We spent several hours out building Frosty. I'm sure if David were home, it'd have been a much bigger snowman, but this was a good attempt for me!
We'd also build a fort-like area between the bushes. Everyone wanted their picture taken in it!
Miss E in pink.
My little eskimo Caroline and the blue blob Matthew!
CHRISTMAS EVE
Christmas Eve was the start of our time with Daddy home with us. We were looking forward to 10 days together! We went to the Christmas Eve service at church and then out for Chinese with the family -- another fun tradition! When we got home from dinner, we let the kiddos open one present -- matching jammies!!
We have the kiddos sleep on the floor in our room on Christmas Eve (to prevent any early bird present opening!) We take the couch cushions in for them to sleep on, so we were without any cushions on the couches, but that didn't prevent a 'pile-on' Daddy!
CHRISTMAS
We have a tradition of finding the pickle ornament to open the first gift -- I think it may be a German tradition we've adopted as our own. Caroline found it after several minutes of looking. I did a good job of hiding it on our anorexic tree!!
Even though she'd found out about Santa, she still was excited to receive a Merliah Barbie Doll.
Matthew opening a cube puzzle. He was fun this year with opening presents!!
Elizabeth wanted a horse for Christmas. It was a little challenging to find, but she didn't get just one, but 12 little horses! She was delighted!
Jonathan got several Iron Man toys and a remote control R2-D2.
Christmas day is a busy one for us. After we finished opening presents at home, we headed to David's aunt's house for a whole family celebration. We have a yummy brunch -- this year I added homemade cinnamon rolls -- YUM YUM!! We have a birthday cake for Jesus and read the Christmas story from the Bible. Presents were distributed and our kiddos were thrilled to receive Pillow Pet knock-offs from the Gilmore's!! We left there early afternoon and headed home for naps for our youngest members.
At dinner, we head to David's parents for yet another celebration. We had a yummy dinner followed by a crazy amount of presents. Who knew that four kiddos would equal so much stuff!
David was relaxing by the fire before the evening got under way.
Our little red-head was quite taken by the character Jessie when we saw the Toy Story 3 movie. Grammy had already stashed these pink cowboy boots away and was able to find a Jessie doll for her. She was so tickled to get both of these items....along with a pick cowboy hat!!
The boy cousins in their matching Colts fleeces.... Matthew will be wearing these for YEARS!!!
Matthew got a sled! It would be the first sled we've owned -- how can that be?!? All the kiddos were pretty excited about it. Thankfully, Grammy was able to find another one a few days later, so hopefully we won't have as much drama over the sleds -- now we just need more snow!
The men in their Santa apparel.
The girl cousins in their matching jammies. This happened to be the year of Jammies for our kiddos. Caroline received 3 pair, Jonathan 4 pair, Elizabeth 3 pair and Matthew got 5 pair! One thing is for sure -- they will look good while sleeping!!THE DAYS AFTER CHRISTMAS...
were spent playing lots of games! We also got lots and lots of new games. As our older two kiddos are getting older, they are able to play games together without adult interaction! It was so fun to watch them sprawled out in the living room playing together while the little two would be napping in the afternoons.
CHRISTMAS AT THE ZOO/WHITE RIVER GARDENS
A perk of a zoo membership is admission to the White River Gardens. We enjoyed them earlier this summer and were looking forward to seeing all the trains on exhibit at Christmas -- except they didn't display the trains this year. So sad. We did enjoy the lights syncronized to music.
Getting a view from above...
and being a cheeseball while doing it!!
Daddy and the kiddos by the lighted trees. Again, take notice of Elizabeth. You'd think she might fly away any second.... It was a bit chilly when at the zoo, but we didn't stay for too very long. We did see the dolphin show and go to the deserts -- both indoor exhibits!
DOWNTOWN SURPRISE EXCURSION
We surprised the kiddos with a trip downtown and a carriage ride! With Elizabeth's new found love for horses, she was in heaven!! It was fun to ride around, check out the lights and sights of downtown Indianapolis.
The blue-eyed side of the carriage.
The brown-eyes with the lighted monument/Christmas tree in the background.
Meeting our horse, Dixie. They were all pretty excited to get to pet her, but a bit apprehensive at first. She really didn't like the bit in her mouth. One of our favorite parts was seeing that Dixie had her hooves painted sparkly pink. Elizabeth loves to have her fingernails painted, so it was fun to see the horse with her "nails" painted!
Our kiddos on the steps of the Soldiers and Sailor's Monument. When the kiddos get older, we'll take an adventure to the top of the monument. I'm not crazy enough to carry them up lots and lots of stairs so we'll wait until they are old enough to do it on their own and appreciate the view.
A different perspective of the monument and "tree."
The IPL (Indianapolis Power & Light) building had fun lights in the windows!
Elizabeth was in rare form this evening -- just having fun no matter what we were doing!
Getting a view from above...
and being a cheeseball while doing it!!
Daddy and the kiddos by the lighted trees. Again, take notice of Elizabeth. You'd think she might fly away any second.... It was a bit chilly when at the zoo, but we didn't stay for too very long. We did see the dolphin show and go to the deserts -- both indoor exhibits!DOWNTOWN SURPRISE EXCURSION
We surprised the kiddos with a trip downtown and a carriage ride! With Elizabeth's new found love for horses, she was in heaven!! It was fun to ride around, check out the lights and sights of downtown Indianapolis.
The blue-eyed side of the carriage.
The brown-eyes with the lighted monument/Christmas tree in the background.
Meeting our horse, Dixie. They were all pretty excited to get to pet her, but a bit apprehensive at first. She really didn't like the bit in her mouth. One of our favorite parts was seeing that Dixie had her hooves painted sparkly pink. Elizabeth loves to have her fingernails painted, so it was fun to see the horse with her "nails" painted!
Our kiddos on the steps of the Soldiers and Sailor's Monument. When the kiddos get older, we'll take an adventure to the top of the monument. I'm not crazy enough to carry them up lots and lots of stairs so we'll wait until they are old enough to do it on their own and appreciate the view.
A different perspective of the monument and "tree."
The IPL (Indianapolis Power & Light) building had fun lights in the windows! The circle and the Christmas tree is a special place for us as it was part of David and my first official "date" to the lighting ceremony the day after Thanksgiving 1997. We have been back to the lighting several times since that first date, but not since having kids. We plan to take the kiddos once they are all a little bigger. There are crazy amounts of people and we'd hate to loose any of them or have them trampled!
We had a fantastic time together wrapping up 2010. As a part of our Christmas card this year, I listed our top 10 of 2010. Here it is again:
10. Surviving the conversion to a new computer system at ELFCU for David. Also, he took a trip to Boston for some training.
9. Rebecca taking on a 'friendly' Biggest Loser competition and losing 20 lbs! As I approach the age my mom was when diagnosed with cancer, I'm more aware of being healthy...not to mention keeping up with 4 active children!
8. Celebrating the the life of David's grandpa - 90 full years, an amazing legacy and an eternity with our Lord!
7. Visiting an ER out of state and getting 5 stitches for Jonathan! Other than this, we've had a relatively non-exciting year in the health area.
6. Purchased a riding lawnmower!
5. Moved Elizabeth and Matthew out of cribs and into big beds! No more cribs for the Cribbs!! They LOVE their new bunk beds and roommates!
4. Caroline loving 2nd grade and Jonathan starting afternoon kindergarten. These two also played soccer this fall and had lots of fun!
3. A two day getaway to Great Wolf Lodge with the kiddos. Three of the four loved it!
2. Family trip to Chicago - LegoLand, American Girl, Navy Pier and family fun to name a few highlights!
1. Celebrating 11 years of marriage, 4 healthy, fun kiddos, oodles of fun times...and looking forward to many, many more in 2011!!!
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