Parties, Parties, and More Parties...

Early in the day on Sunday our family loaded into the car and drove 3 hours north to a town outside of Flagstaff to ride the POLAR EXPRESS!!!  We were SO excited that the car ride felt like it lasted for hours- we kept asking if we were there yet every 5 minutes.  Mom and Dad tried everything to keep us occupied, but we were just too excited.

By the time we FINALLY arrived in Williams we were ready for some action.  Dressed in winter gear, Macie and I found a play area next to the train station and had a blast in the snow.

It didn't take long for us to decide that it was time for a snowball fight, and Dad joined right in!

 Macie hadn't been to the snow since she was little, so it was her first real experience playing in it.

She loved prancing around in it!

Macie seemed to enjoy eating the snow more than playing in it...good thing it was white...

I tried my hand at making snow angles, but discovered that they were LOTS of effort, and made me much colder than I desired.

Before leaving the playground the family decided to build a snowman.  Everyone helped shape the bodies, then Mom searched far and wide to find decorations.  She lucked out when she stumbled upon a Santa Hat and goody bag left by someone earlier in the day.

Our finished product turned out to be pretty fancy!

After stopping for a quick dinner we changed into our pajamas and walked over to the train station- we were SO excited to be able to wear pajamas out and about!

With tickets in hand we walked to our train car, ready to board for the North Pole.

Here are some pictures of our family handing over our tickets and boarding the train:

We settled down in our seats, ready for the action to begin.

 

When the train started moving, both Macie and I peered out the window to watch the towns as we rode by.

Mom begged us to get some pictures, but couldn't seem to get us to pay much attention...

Soon after leaving the station, we were served cookies and hot chocolate as Christmas carols played overhead.

After a 30 minute train ride we arrived at the North Pole- it was beautiful; all of Santa's Village was covered in bright Christmas lights, and we could see Elves working through the windows of the little houses.  Our train stopped in front of Santa's huge sleigh where Santa stood waving with his reindeer.  Both Macie and I were awe struck!

As the train started back to the station, we heard an announcement that Santa had boarded the train and was going to stop and say hello to everyone!!!  When he got to our train car Macie and I were so excited that we bombarded him hello's and couldn't stop talking to him.  After telling him our Christmas wishes, he hugged us goodbye and gave us special Christmas jingle bells.

We couldn't stop smiling as he walked away.

Macie and I started to get tired after the long day of fun, and snuggled down with Mom and Dad for the train ride to the station.

 

The following week was filled with lots of activity.  At school we spent lots of time working on our Christmas performance, and Macie and I couldn't wait to perform all the songs we had learned (we also practiced a lot at home on various "stages" throughout the house)!

Mid week we went to gymnastics, and I climbed ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP OF THE ROPE- apparently it was a  big deal, because everyone went nuts.  Mom even took me to the store to let me pick out a toy.  I decided I wanted something fancy, and choose a necklace and earring set.

On Wednesday evening we dressed in the new outfits Mom made, and went to school for our big performance!

 The Apple Room started the festivities!!!

After the Rainbow Room, Macie and her friends in the Sunshine Room wowed the crowd with their Christmas renditions.  Poor Macie was really tired, and it showed in her lack of enthusiasm...

For the finale, all 3 classes joined together on stage to sing "Go Tell it on the Mountian"- Macie's FAVORITE song!!!

 

 

Macie LOVED shouting out the song to the crowd!

When the performance ended, poor Macie was SO tired she had to sit...

I wasn't tired at all, and took the opportunity to pose for pictures with my friends.

 
Mom was thrilled with our performances, and even more thrilled that she got to take a picture of us together!

One of my favorite parts of the night was seeing some of my old friends- Blake was there, and so was Catalina- she was my BESTEST girlfriend in class last year!!!

Because we had a late night, it was tough getting up early that next morning, but once Mom told us that we were having our Christmas parties at school we perked right up!  After we ate and dressed, we played around on the IPAD with Dad making all sorts of silly faces:

 

Apparently Mom was not as amused as the rest of us were...

We finally made our way downstairs, dressed and ready for the day.

On the way out I put on a pair of Mom's heels over my shoes and waltzed out into the garage claiming "I was ready to go to school".  Mom almost fell over when she looked back at me- I guess I look pretty grown up...

At school Mom helped our class make old school gingerbread houses out of milk cartons and graham crackers, we all had a great time!

I was really proud of my finished product!

 Afterwards our class had a gift exchange and each of us got a new book!

After our party was over, Mom headed over to the Sunshine Room to join Macie for her class party.  Her class had spent the morning baking carrot cake cupcakes from scratch, and they were all REALLY excited to tasted their masterpieces.  Mom sat with them at the table as they all sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and then dug into the cupcakes.  Macie loved them, and Mom was PLEASANTLY surprised at how good they were (she got to eat one of her own and inhaled the cream cheese frosting)!

Afterwards her class had a book exchange as well, and Macie really enjoyed opening her gift.

That night I was proud to show off my gingerbread house, and insisted that pictures be taken prior to it being eaten.

Boy, was it yummy!!!

Friday was my last day of school before Christmas break, and I was sad that I wouldn't be seeing my friends for a few weeks- so sad in fact, that I produced some tears on the drive to school.  Mom and Macie knew I was a little upset, so they made the morning walk to my classroom full of fun!

 After posing with Macie at "our spot", my tears and upset were forgotten.

This coming week is going to be SO MUCH FUN- I can't wait to find out all the things we are going to be doing, can you?!?!?!