Oh Christmas Tree

 Saturday mornings are pretty special around here. We love having Daddy home and eating a big breakfast together as a family. Today it was pancakes, and I loved watching the children fill their tummies and talk our ears off this morning!

The weather has been warm and wonderful, but all the snow has melted away leaving semi-green grass and bare sidewalks. As we drove to pick up our Christmas tree this morning Mr. Stannix said, "Looks like it's going to be a Charlie Brown Christmas this year." Somehow it's just not the same without the snow, but with a hubby who commutes each day to the city the bare roads have been nice.

Since all the trees had the same price tag we picked the biggest one we could find. Mr. Stannix gets a little excited about Christmas and does a good job sharing the magic of Christmas with the children.

We stashed the tree in the garage over night to keep with tradition of decorating it before the First presidency Christmas devotional. The two little boys went for a nap (along with Daddy) and I finished cleaning and prepping for Mike's surprise birthday party!

 Just before dinner close friends and family started trickling in. It was great to see Mike's brother again. It's been a while!

 Since he's such an old guy now we needed some help lighting all the candles!

It was fun planning this for my sweetheart and I am so grateful to those who came for the visit! 

After everyone left we put the littles to bed and mustered up just enough energy to lug that giant tree inside. We had to let it get settled in before we decorate tomorrow. We didn't realize how huge it really was until we set it up! But it is beautiful and it smells amazing! We can't wait for the kids to see it in the morning!