For Christmas this year, Eric and I didn't have a lot of ideas for eachother. We like to exchange gifts but outside of stocking stuffers and workout clothes I am usually at a loss. When asked I just say I want time together....this means kid free time we can actually talk without interruption. We realized we were probably both planning a night away so we decided to discuss and just plan together. I had already booked Grammy & Pops to watch the boys the 2nd weekend in January and made a dinner reservation at the nicest restaurant I could find in Baltimore so we stuck with that plan a booked a hotel near the restaurant. There were still a few surprises Christmas morning. Eric got me some wireless headphones for the gym and a couple things from my favorite place to shop Jane.com. He also got me a really cute apron (because I do so much cooking/baking...ha!). It was ironic because I surprised him with 2 weeks of meals from Plated.com. We get two meals a week delivered so I am forced to cook! All the ingredients are included so it is super easy and we mostly try to cook them together after the boys are in bed so it has been time to catch up on our days etc.
Our night away was so relaxing and fun. We left our house early to have brunch in Harbor East and then did lots of shopping. Turns out there were a ton of sales going on in Fells Point and most places were offering Mimosas and Bloody Mary's which is my kind of shopping! :) I may have gone a little overboard but how often do I get to shop kid free? After shopping we checked into our hotel to relax before dinner. We took a nap and then watched the Ravens playoff game. Our dinner reservation was at 8:30 at restaurant called Charleston. The menu was a little out there for me but I knew Eric would really enjoy it. I did a 3 course meal with wine pairings and Eric did a 4 course meal. Overall we really enjoyed it and it was fun to get dressed up. The next morning we didn't have to check out until noon so we decided to pick up breakfast at Starbucks and rent a movie in the room. We watched The Judge and thought it was a great movie.
Both of us really enjoyed our time together. We wish we could do it more often! Thank you to Grammy & Pops for watching the boys! Here are some pics from our cooking date and night away....
We weren't able to get together with my sister and kids before Christmas so she made a trip to see us the Saturday after Christmas. We wanted to get the kids together to exchange gifts and just to see each other since it had been a while. We decided to take all the kids to the B&O museum in the morning and exchange our gifts in the afternoon. Eric was on call the night before so we waited for him to get home and then we headed into the city. The kids had a great time seeing the train displays and taking a ride on the train. We even got to see the Lego Man and Frosty. We opened gifts before Lincoln and Daddy went down for nap. :) Here are some pics from the day....
The best part about Christmas this year was that Eric miraculously was post call Christmas Eve and off Christmas Day. He hardly had any weekends off for the 3 months he was at shock trauma so it was all worth it when we found out he would be on call the day before Christmas Eve and New Years Eve and get a nice holiday break. When Eric got off Christmas Eve morning he drove straight home to pick up the boys and take them to Bass Pro to see Santa. Eric had promised Hayden they would get a picture with that Santa and the lines had always been so long so they got there a little before it opened. They only had to wait about 20 minutes and Lincoln even sat on Santa's lap! Once the boys got home and we had lunch we took a family nap. We went to Christmas Eve service at our church which was awesome and then came home to do an easy dinner and open one present each. Of course we all got pajamas! Once we got the boys in bed we waited a little to make sure Hayden was sleeping and then started our Santa prep. I had most things wrapped but daddy had to put together a Thomas Train Tower for Lincoln and wrap my gifts. I had a couple last minute things to wrap and prepared the boys stockings and then we headed to bed.
We told Hayden he could not get out of bed until 7:00 and he actually slept until a little after that. He came into our room and then we all headed downstairs together. He was so excited to see everything under the tree. We encouraged him to wait for Lincoln to do most of his gifts but we let him start with his stocking and then let him open a few small gifts while we waited. My parents drove from my sisters house to ours early and arrived at 8:45. We woke Lincoln at 9:00 (yes, he usually sleeps this late) and brought him down for some gift opening!
It was so much fun to see the smiles on their faces with every gift. Hayden got books, clothes, shoes, and a ninja turtle lego set. His big Santa gift was a 3DS which he had not asked for but we knew he would love it as an upgrade from his Leappad. Lincoln's big gift was the Thomas Train Tower but he also got lots of books and cars which are his favorite things.
We spent the day playing with new toys and relaxing. My mom made Chicken Pot Pie for dinner per Eric's request. It was a great day and I of course took lots of photos and videos to remember it. :) Here are my favorites.....
Santa!!
The boys in new matching pajamas
I think I am supposed to be excited about something!
Brother sure is!
Milk & cookies for Santa and carrots for the reindeer
Santa has arrived!
What is going on here?
Hayden really wanted to help Lincoln open his gifts
I was there! My mom took this pic of Hayden helping Lincoln open his stocking.
This is pretty awesome
This kept Hayden busy for days. He is so good now at following the lego instructions and hardly needs any help.
The weeks leading up to Christmas were so much fun. We love the holiday season in Maryland and try to fit in as much in as we can. Eric's schedule made it a little harder this year but he will always sacrifice sleep to spend time with his boys. Here are some photos of some of the fun events, visits, and playdates we enjoyed this holiday season.....
Eric's work did a night out at Christmas Village in Baltimore instead of their weekly conference. It was nice to be able to bring the boys and Hayden enjoyed the Dirty Santa exchange.
Me and Lincoln met friends to see the train displays at the Ellicott City B&O museum.
The weekend before Christmas we traveled down to my parents in St. Mary's County to do presents. Hayden was super excited to dig into this pile from Grammy & Pops.
Yeah, I got a Batman helicopter only making me cooler than I already am.
That night we drove to Flat Iron Farm. This is a place my parents always took me as a kid to see the lights but it has turned into so much more with santa, horse rides, and shops.
Vaillant's on a cow sleigh. :)
This horse was huge!!
Looking at animals with Pops
Roasting marshmallows
Eat it daddy!
Our friends had us over for a Christmas playdate with cookie decorating and fun photos.
Mommy got in on the action
So did Linc. :)
Yum!
I am just going to scoop up this yummy goodness and eat it with a spoon.
After school on Tuesday we had friends over for a Polar Express Playdate. Here is Linc enjoying popcorn and the movie.
We had family photos taken with a local photographer in late October. We had a 30 minute mini session and were able to get a few cute family photos and smiling shots of the boys. Lincoln is typically our hardest to get to smile for the camera but at least we got him looking in a few. I waited to post them since I wanted to use a couple for our Christmas cards. Here are are my favorites. I love my handsome boys!!!
