christmas presents

So I have these images in somewhat the wrong order, but oh well, I'll just go with it! Above is the completed Lego space shuttle that Jared received from Santa. He loved putting it together and it took him only 1 day! (I was hoping it was going to keep him occupied for several days!) The shuttle comes off the launch pad and there's a whole bunch of cool stuff inside the shuttle too when he opens it up. This is one of those Lego projects that should NEVER be disassembled. It is definitely more a model than a toy.

Jacob got a ukulele. He has been learning how to play it at school. He's pretty darn good at it too! I had no idea he knew that much until he picked it up and started playing a few tunes for us. Wow. He is really enjoying it!
Ryan got a cell phone. He was very excited to finally have his own. We bought the phone, but he has to pay for the minutes. Unfortunately, Ryan had a very bad sore throat and cold during the holiday. He was pretty miserable. Poor kid.
Jared also got a phone. He's had a very basic phone for about a year, but this one is a bit fancier with a slider qwerty keyboard. Same rule applies here -- we gave him the phone, but he pays for the service.
Jacob got a new bike. It's got gears and is big enough to last for quite a few years. This year was a good year to get a bike since its been so dry. There's no snow, so he was able to get out and ride.
Matthew got a batman plane and a green lantern plane. Both toys shoot projectiles. Wahoo!
Because Christmas Day fell on Sunday this year, our morning started pretty early. The boys woke us up at 5 a.m. and we headed downstairs to see the santa gifts & stockings. After playing with those for a bit, we opened our gifts to each other. We ate a quick breakfast and got ready for church. We decided to attend G&G's ward, which started at 9 a.m. -- which meant we left here at 8! I love having church on Christmas because it helps me remember the real reason we celebrate Christmas -- the birth of our savior, Jesus Christ. Grandma was in charge of the choir program after the sacrament and it was very nicely done. After church we headed over to G&G's house to open gifts, eat lunch, and play with cousins. A very nice day indeed.

PS. We always get "matching" new pajamas for Christmas. I simply didn't have the time to sew this year and I couldn't find any fabric to be excited about, so if you notice in the pictures, we have a plaid theme going on. Each person has different plaid pants and we all have navy blue shirts.