Toy OVERLOAD!

Oh! We had a wonderful Christmas this year. Once again, everyone was way too generous. Between the Wii, the backyard roller coaster, the bouncy house, the car games, and the robots (that's not even mentioning half of the gifts from family and friends and not even all of the gifts from Santa) we are literally needing to either buy a new house or do some serious toy downsizing! I don't even know where to start... I've been going through things and I feel like I'm just making a bigger mess. The problem is, the boys are so good with their toys that nothing is broken or torn up so I can't throw anything away and I don't know how to give away stuff that I know they love. Parker can see a toy from when he was 2 and say, "Remember when I got this on that rainy day from my great random Uncle Bob? Oh, I love this toy!" How do they remember? The best I can do for now is take out the baby baby toys and put them away for the next one. :)

We got to do so much and see so many family and friends. The boys are so blessed and they have no idea! Uncle Toby and Aunt Katrina flew all the way from Oman just to see them! :) And did they ever get an earfull from Parker. It was like he was trying to squeeze 6 months of conversations that he had missed out on with them into 2 days. I hope it didn't make them too nuts but he just really loves them.

The Hoffman Christmas is such a neat get-together where drinking is encouraged, home-cooked food is a must and caroling is the cutest tradition ever and every year brings tears to my eyes for whatever reason. The Moore Christmas is just plain goofy with our lack of traditions that always makes for new and fun memories. We pack and unpack and pack and unpack and drive ourselves silly but every year, it is worth it.

Santa must have seen how good the boys are (deep down... way deep down) because he made 2 trips. We put the boys to bed around 8:00 on Christmas Eve and they were both restless. Garrett kept saying, "Oh Santa!" in the most pathetic voice you can imagine and Parker was talking up a storm in his room for at least 30 minutes. I went in to tell him that we forgot to put out the milk and cookies and he was SO SO SO upset. How could we forget such an important thing?! When he got back in bed, he told me,"Mommy, I am SO GLAD you got me up to put Santa's food out. He would be so sad without cookies."

Once Parker was back in bed, Santa rode past in his sleigh. Garrett heard the sleigh bells and started singing Jingle Bells in his bed and then went back to the "Oh Santa" business. The next morning, when we asked Parker if he heard Santa he said he did hear his sleigh but he didn't look out the window because he was scared Santa would see him. Such a good boy!

It seems like the holidays make everyone a little crazy. By December 24th, I feel like the 900 times I told the boys, "If you two don't stop fighting, Santa isn't going to come" doesn't matter anymore. I am still the first one awake at 3 AM coughing and banging doors to get someone else to wake up with me. All to see the kids FREAK OUT that Santa amazingly did come and did get down the chimney and did eat the cookies. "I knew we were good this year" is what Parker said when he realized he got everything he wanted. "Of course you were, honey. Deep down... you were the best kids ever this year."