Patterson Christmas Traditions

Noah's Gingerbread House!

Christmas at our house is full of a lot of Christmas Traditions! I guess they start with the Christmas lights that we put up every year. James and the boys start putting them up in October so that they will be ready by Thanksgiving for the big lighting ceremony. I am not sure how many lights we put up but I am sure it has reached a million plus.

The first Sunday in December we decorate Gingerbread Houses. Everyone does their own and it has been fun to see what everyone comes up with every year. I am posting a few of them. For some reason I don't have a picture of Dakota's, but if you look at Summer's blog she has it posted.

The 2nd Monday in December, Santa comes and we invite all of our family and friends, and the last couple of years, the city of Alpine to come up and have Hot Cocoa and cookies and get their picture taken with Santa and his Sleigh. It is a lot of fun and has also become a tradition for many families who come every year.

On Christmas Eve, we take our family to a movie and then come home and put out the Luminaries, move Santa's sleigh to the bottom of the driveway, where Santa then comes and visits with all the children whose parents drive them up to talk to him one last time. This too has become a tradition for many families. We have been doing it since we moved here. Cars line up for blocks and Santa visits with each car and hands out candy canes! It is fun to watch how excited the children get as they put in that last request to Santa.

We then open Christmas pajama's and the kids exchange gifts to each other!

After the kids go to bed, Santa leaves their stockings by their bedroom doors. When they wake up they can open their stockings that have small gifts in them as well as movies, which they end up watching the rest of the night. I think they wake up about 2:00 or 3:00. They are not allowed to wake James and I up until atleast 7:00, but the stockings usually keep them busy. The older kids say that the stockings are a favorite Christmas tradition and Bobby said it was the one he missed the most while he was on his mission. ( Santa feels alot of pressure every year to make the stockings wonderful!)

This year they did not start sending Noah in to wake mom and dad up until about 7:30! After that, everyone takes turns opening up their presents one at a time so we can all see what everyone got. And it makes Christmas last alittle longer. In the afternoon Summer and Scott came up with the boys and we opened a few more presents. Dakota was having a hard time and wanted to play with Noah's new stuff, and because it was new to Noah, he didn't want to share. That made things interesting! But all in all it was a great Christmas!

Thanks to my girls for setting up this blog for me! It will be fun for family and freinds who live elsewhere to share in what is going on with our family. I am excited, and hopefully will keep things current. Summer has already told me I am not doing a very good job because it has taken me a week to get this first blog done. But the whole blogging thing makes me nervous! I will try to do better!!!

Autumns Log Cabin

Bobby's New York Giants House. Notice the shirt on the Gingerbread man!

Aspen's Tree and Noah and my Train in the background!

Daniel's BYU House proudly displaying the score of the BYU - Utah game. He used his favorite gum as shingles, that is why so many are missing. He was always taking them off to chew!

Hunter made a village!

The Christmas Lights on the house!

Autumn with Santa!

Real live Reindeer! Not at our house though. These were at Thanksgiving point! Maybe next year we will get them at our house!

McKenzie and Santa!

Is this not the cutest smile ever!

The Nativity in our yard!

A view from the bottom of the driveway by the gate!

The boys on Christmas Eve!

Christmas Eve after Santa came!

Christmas morning after the kids came!
Autumn and Bobby are surveying the damages!

Dakota with his new Buccaneers Football Helmet. He likes them because they have a Pirate Ship on their uniform. He doesn't care if they are the worst in the league, and was thrilled when they beat Hunters New Orleans Saints!!


We hope everyone had a great Christmas!!!!