We're having another Christmasy weekend. On Friday, we went out to the farm to have another visit with Shauna and Cole before they went back to Edmonton (yesterday), and to spend more time with Laurel and Bronwyn before they leave for Toronto. The girls got to open a Christmas gift on Friday evening and then a few more gifts on Saturday morning. They were very excited, of course, and have been enjoying their gifts ever since. I quite like this spreading out of the gift opening for the kids because they can focus on what they're getting at the moment and they also have some time to use their gifts before the next batch. It's not as overwhelming as getting them all at once.
Yesterday, we continued our Christmas activities with putting up and decorating our Christmas tree. We listened to Christmas carols from a Disney Sing Along Songs DVD while we decorated, and then the girls also watched Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas when we were finished. This was the first time I let the girls decorate the tree. They put about three-quarters of all the ornaments on the tree and even added some of their own toys. Sophia got out a set of 12 dinosaurs with curved necks and tails (it's a game like Barrel of Monkeys) and hung them on the tree, and then they both nestled a My Little Pony on a tree branch as well. They had a lot of fun decorating! Plus I let them eat a bunch of chocolate they received from their Great Grandma Louise.
Before we could put up our Christmas tree yesterday, we had to clean the living room. I said to the girls, "Now let's try to keep it clean, okay?" I thought Sophia's answer was funny... "Yeah, we have to keep it clean or Santa might trip on something!" Then, when we were moving the rocking chair to make room for the tree, Sophia said, "We have to put it over here in case Santa wants to sit down." Then she had to figure out exactly where we will put Santa's milk and cookies so they're close to that chair. Also, on the way into the city yesterday, Sophia was asking how Santa will get into our house since we don't have a fireplace (I think she really knows her Santa stuff since watching Polar Express Friday evening). We decided on the back door, so we'll put carrots out on the patio for the reindeer.
Today, we're heading to Yellow Grass for a Christmas party with my family. The girls are very excited. I'm glad to have our Christmas parties with our families early this year and for the first time, we'll be staying home for Christmas. I'm looking forward to it. The girls will just get gifts from us and Santa on Christmas morning, and I think it will be nice and relaxing.
This all worked out well for another reason. As time goes on, I don't want to be too far from the hospital. When I go into labour this time (which I really hope will not be until January), I need to go straight to the hospital because Georgia's heart rate will be closely monitored while I'm in labour. Also, I've had fairly quick labours (seven and four hours), so being an hour away seems like a bad idea. I'm not leaving the city again after today!