'Twas the Night Before...

So, Christmas Eve finally came, and we were all so excited! We had such a fun day. We met with some friends in the afternoon for a scrumptious dinner followed by the nativity play. The great thing is that between our 3 families, we had enough kids to do the entire play and they all loved it and we just got to watch! When I asked my boys what they wanted to be for the play, Tyler said he wanted to be a wiseman because he wanted to carry the 'golden gifts' to baby Jesus. And Sam said he wanted to be an angel. And I laughed...as that would be about the least fitting role for that boy. And then I had to tell him that part was already spoken for! So he agreed to be a wiseman too.
So, we were all ready to leave the house to head over to our friends' when I realized I didn't have any 'costumes' for these boys. And we've never participated in the nativity play before, so I wasn't exactly sure what to use. The only thing I had readily available were some blankets so I grabbed a few and ran out the door. So now don't be jealous of my mad costuming skills, I had to make do with what I had! Garrett said these were the wisemen from the 'hood. Oh well, the boys could have cared less, they were happy!
And when it came down to actually taking the gifts to the newborn babe, Sam the Wiseman wanted nothing to do with it, so Tyler pulled the weight for both of them. Phew!

(Grace made such a perfect Mary!)

And after we wrapped up the nativity, I read 'The Legend of Papa Noel' to the kids (which was fun since all the others hadn't heard it before as this was their first Christmas here in Louisiana) and we all caravanned out to Gramercy for the traditional Cajun bonfires on the levee.

I LOVE this tradition! It is definitely one of my favorite things we do in Louisiana!

The drive was about 45 minutes long and I knew the minute we got in the car that Sam would fall asleep on the way there since he hadn't napped and it was about 7:00. Sure enough, he slept the whole way. So when we arrived in Gramercy, we woke him up and got out of the car to walk to the levee and he was not a happy camper. First off, it was a little weird to wake up in this scenario, I'm sure. And second, he HATES fireworks. Since we missed last year due to Tyler being sick, we hadn't been since Sam was barely a year old and I forgot that there are fireworks going off like CRAZY the entire time. So there are fires all over the place and huge loud fireworks going off all at the same time--complete and utter chaos--and this boy was a complete and total mess. He would not stand, walk, or do anything but cling to me or Garrett. And cover his ears, and scream, and panic, etc. It was lovely!

I finally convinced him to dig his head out of my neck for at least one second to look up for a picture.

And then we finally made a little progress and he agreed to get down so we didnt' have to carry him anymore (thank heavens! The kid is pushing 40 lbs!). But this (blurry) picture gives you an idea of what he looked like. ABSOLUTELY petrified. I can't even describe how he was, he was stiff as a board and scared to death.

So we walked around a little bit, chatted with our friends, and just had a GREAT time. It is always so fun to be part of a unique cultural tradition.

And by the end, Sam loosened up a lot (and the fireworks let up quite a bit too, which I am sure had something to do with it!). He walked around a little bit on his own and even told me he liked the bonfires and thanked me for bringing him there. That was some serious progress, I tell ya! And as the fires started dying down, we figured it was time to head back home to prepare for Santa's arrival.

We made it home with enough time for us all to open our new pajamas from Grandma Andersen and set out some cookies and milk for Santa and head to bed. The boys were so cute about the cookies & milk this year. They were so concerned about it and Sam was wanting to get it ready at about noon. But I was pretty sure Santa wouldn't like milk that had been sitting out for 10 hours! And once we had it set up and had the boys ready in pj's to head to bed, we said our good nights and Tyler turned back and ran over towards the fireplace and moved the plate over and said "I better move this because Santa will probably step on it right when he comes out of the fireplace. I think it will be safer over here." He had a good point! I loved that he was thinking things through like that!
So with some cookies (delicious ones, I might add! Cinnamon & sugar sticks....yum!) & milk set out, we were officially ready for Santa's arrival. And it is usually at this point that I want to freeze time for a bit. The house is quiet, the gifts are set out, the fire is cracking, the lights are glowing, and the anticipation for the next day fills the air. But yet, I sort of want to just hold on and wait a little while longer before the big day arrives since the presents are unwrapped and it's all over in a flash. I just want to make it all last just a little longer...although I know two little boys who definitely wouldn't have any of that!