Christmas Day

Christmas morning came bright and early with Brooke up at 5:45 am. The poor girl had to wait until 7:30 when we woke Riley up from a deep sleep to open presents from Santa. They both enjoyed Christmas morning and loved their gifts. They had time to play and they we had a breakfast bake. They guys plowed the driveway, again, and we then we headed over to Scott and Angie's for a festive meal as well.

The kids got these funky towels from Santa.

I gave my mom a three generation frame for Christmas so we attempted a photo of us girls. There was a better one but I couldn't tell when I was browsing for photos for the blog.

Here are Ali, Scott and Angie opening their gifts. We had some laughs and tasty food at their house.

Christmas Eve

This year my parents came to our house for Christmas. It was my first Christmas in MN although I have lived here for more than 13 years. We decided to attend the 3:00 church service at Hosanna! Church in Lakeville. It was a beautiful Christmas service which we thought was almost a theatrical performance. They had a live nativity and beautiful music. We all enjoyed it, even Riley who slept through the first part. We came home, opened some presents, ate dinner, and enjoyed being together. We managed to take a few photos too!

Sledding

Eric took the kids out in the yard to sled a little today while I was out and about. They said they had fun but by the look on Riley's face it was a little painful too! Looks like fun! We might as well enjoy the winter-I think it is here to stay!

A Visit with Santa

This weekend we went to a coworker of Eric's for her annual Christmas party. Santa always pays a visit and spends a little time with each child there. Brooke and Riley went right over to him when their names were called. They were pretty enthralled with that guy in the red suit since he knew some details about them. The photo below Santa shows the kids before we went to the party. I just love Brooke's crossed legs and Riley insisted on wearing one red sock and one blue sock for the party.

Eric and the kids clowning around before we went to the party.

Prior Lake Parade

On Friday, December 4th we attended the Prior Lake Christmas Parade. We got there in time for the tree lighting, which was really neat to me. I have never witnessed that before. We ran into some of our neighbors and watched the parade with them and then ran into a coworker of Eric's and watched the fireworks with them. I enjoy the small town feel here. The kids did a couple crafts in the City Hall and then we hit the DQ drive-thru on the way home. It was a fun night for the Spielers!

Eric's birthday and Thanksgiving

So much time has gone by since I last blogged! It's been a busy time so here are just some quick photos from November. We celebrated Eric's birthday. Here he is opening his gift from the kids. And below are a few photos from when we were in WI for Thanksgiving. All 4 cousins watched a movie in Grandma's bed. It was so cute--for about 8 minutes!