More Christmas Fun

One of our favorite Christmas activities is doing the Advent calendar each day. My Aunt Mary Jo was so sweet to buy these for the kids, and they LOVE them. As soon as they wake up, they (not so) patiently listen to us read the bible verse corresponding to that day and quickly gobble up the pieces of chocolate inside.

Such happy kids....

until it's time to put them up for the next day. 

Cue dramatic temper tantrum from Claire. Practically. Every. Morning.

"Just one more piece of chocolate, Mom!?!"

Another new favorite is the bag of "snowballs" from Uncle Johnny and Aunt Loretta. They are as close as we're going to get to real snow in FL, can be played with inside, and even crunch like snow. (I also love that they are machine washable!) These are a huge hit, too, and we've been having snowball fights several times a day. Avery gathers a huge pile of "ammo," as he calls it, and then takes to pelting us with them while yelling "Bam!" He actually has pretty good aim. We all run throughout the house and take cover behind furniture. Phil has gotten pretty into these fights as well...maybe a little too much so. ;) Claire's favorite part is picking them back up.

Lastly, I was excited to find plastic ornaments and paint sets at the dollar store. Avery loved painting them, and it was a great afternoon Christmas activity that didn't involve too much effort or planning. 

He took his work very seriously...