Cornelius Chronicles

We have spent the last month learning about different aspects of the Christmas story using a wonderful advent calendar from this year's December issue of the Friend. We finished the calendar on Christmas morning. It has been a great experience to spend a few minutes each night reconnecting through the scriptures with the Savior's birth story and the reason why we as a family celebrate Christmas. I recommend it to anyone looking for a new family tradition. Now, don't get me wrong, we still very much enjoy the presents and Santa Clause and Christmas candy at this time of year. I love to watch the excitement of the children on Christmas morning as they open their presents and fall in love with their new toys and dream about the mystery of Santa Clause. This year the kids woke up early to discover candy in their shoes, stockings on the couch, and wonderful presents under the tree. The twinkle of Santa Clause gleamed in their eyes as they beheld the magic of Christmas m

I think Loyd has finally answered the age old question, "What do you do when you have more sticks than pockets?" The kids have been enjoying their new Christmas PJs from Grandma C. They loved them so much they couldn't wait to get their pictures taken in them. Bekah felt very pretty in her pink Mini Mouse nightgown. She would wear it every night if she could. Loyd was excited to have Mickey Mouse PJs that matched Bekah's . He looks up to his big sister with such love and excitement. He wants to do everything she does. He takes such handsome photos when I can get him to stop wiggling. Xavier must have been channelling Elmo from his new pajama set. He giggled and smiled all night long as we took pictures. Every time I said, "Cheese!" he would grin and squint his eyes and wait for the flash to hit. Don't let the previous pictures fool you. This was by no means a simple or easy photo shoot. Most of the time was spent corralling wiggling, giggling

The jig is up, Mr. Xavier. I saw you do it. I saw you talk half way across a room all on your own Friday morning. Now that the cat is out of the bag I expect more walking out of you, young man. :) I thought I would share this little dress up ensemble. Xavier picked it out himself, brought it to me and grunted for me to put it on him. He wore it all evening. He loved being a superhero cat. I knew there were superhero tendencies in our little Professor X all along!

Xavier finally decided to try standing on his own, unsupported. He decided to show off this new skill to me while in the bathtub Thursday morning. I'm so glad he thought standing up on unsteady legs in a slippery bath was a great idea. Crazy kid. :>) Bekah decided to play with her wardrobe this week. Can you guess the theme of this outfit? I'll give you one hint; it's not stripes. ;>) I just love picture perfect moments like these. :>D We met Santa Clause at the city library this week. The kids were so excited they could hardly contain their wiggles on the drive there. Once inside the warm library they eagerly watch Mr. Clause arrive in style on his red fire truck and come into the library. We all patiently waited in line to sit on his lap and share our Christmas list wishes. To keep the kids busy, the librarians kindly brought small cups of Goldfish crackers. To keep the adults busy, they stuck the line by the cheesy romance novels. We got a good la