Team Johnston

We have never read this book, and actually didn't even have it until this year. So, I suited Ranger up in his very "Christmasy" skeleton pajamas, and we sat down to read it before bed. He really enjoyed it, and we have read it at least once every day since!

Day 7: Decorating a Gingerbread House!

This activity was a HUGE hit! I did most of the icing, but Ranger was the primary decorator. He loved every minute of this, especially getting to eat the candy along the way. He was quite methodical (I wonder where he gets that trait), and was only content when all the candy was placed on the house or in his tummy! We will definitely be doing this every year.

Day 8: Buying toys for our church toy drive

Our church does a toy drive every year, so I thought this would be a good opportunity to start teaching the boys that giving to others is such an important part of Christmas. I actually think Ranger understood it and understood why we weren't buying toys for him or Callen on this shopping trip. He enjoyed picking each gift and knew that we bought them for a little boy and a little girl.







Day 9: Eating PoParella's popcorn and watching "How The Grinch Stole Christmas"

Ranger is in total love with the the theme song from "The Grinch" and has seen the Jim Carrey version of the movie, but he has never seen the cartoon version we all grew up on. So, we took a trip earlier in the day to PoParella's in Frisco Square for some special popcorn and fired up the movie after dinner. We even let Callen enjoy it with us for 10 minutes or so. :-) I'm pretty sure we all loved our family movie night!








Day 10: Visiting Santa Claus!

We've been talking to Ranger about Santa this year, so he was quite excited when we told him that he would get to see Santa and tell him what he wanted for Christmas. Our neighborhood is fantastic and has a children's Christmas party each year. It's just a short walk around the corner, there is no crazy line at a crazy mall, and they have milk and cookies! The boys happily sat on Santa's lap, and Ranger told him what he wanted - cupcakes! When Santa asked how many, Ranger replied, "Just one." Love that kid! We will get the official photographer's picture in a week or so.