Meeting Santa...

We had a visit from Santa at our church Christmas Party. Before the party, Ben explained to his cousin JJ that he might be a "DECOY". In other words, it might not be the REAL Santa. However, after seeing him, Ben was sufficiently convinced that he was not a decoy. Can you believe it? The REAL Santa was at OUR party. Awesome. Here are some pictures...

Santa read a story to the kids...

Sam pointing at Santa. That's as close as he got. Santa was a little scary, even though he's a big fan and can't quit talking about his impending visit to our house.

Waiting in line... (One hour wait, yes ONE HOUR! Once you're in line to see Santa, there's no turning back, so what do you do?? You wait, and wait, and wait.
Ben's chat with Santa...

Christmas Art by Ben

I LOVE my creative boy....

Sam Did This!!

Sam just did this puzzle by himself, and it's a REALLY hard one. I still can't believe he figured it out. Yay Sam!

Bundled

Here's Ben ready to play in the snow (16 degrees outside). Love his smile in the picture...

Sam's First Dentist Appointment

Our dentist (and hygienist Julie) do such a great job with the boys that they LOVE going. This was Sam's first cleaning, though he'd been there to watch Ben's cleaning many times. Sam did awesome. Had his mouth open as soon as he sat in the chair.

Elmo sunglasses because of the bright light.
Sparkly clean teeth! I can't really look at this picture with a straight face. So funny.
Sam said this was like being "at the beach". Here he is lounging, waiting for Dr. Joe to come by.

Sam got a giant blow up basketball and a toothbrush. Ben got a balloon animal (ball python) made by the dentist himself.

Super Hero Sam

Super hero jammies... up, up and away!

Caleb and Sam

The Morgans are staying with us for a few days while Savannah takes her 12-year old birthday temple trip with her Mom and Dad (Orlando! Hope you're having fun, guys!). The big kids are off to school, and Sam and Caleb are playing so sweetly. Sam doesn't do "partner" playing that often. He's usually either playing alone, or getting picked on by his brother. But this morning, they're playing together non-stop. The boys just told me they were in the bedroom telling "ghost stories". This was their scary "ghost story" pose.


And a cute cousin hug...

Dump...

This all happens in one fluid movement within five seconds of entering the house after school. Backpack, lunchbox, coat, hat, shoes. School Ben becomes Home Ben. It's impressive. A little like the transitions in a triathlon...and a little not. :-)