"The best Christmas ever"

proclaimed my littlest, as I put him to bed tonight. He got really lucky, and scored a ton of cool toys this year- lots of Lego... Star Wars and Atlantis; Clone Commander Blaster gun, Nerf Dart tag, Lego Rock Band, an electric piano, and a ton of other stuff. Yes, he got spoiled. Last year, he got hockey stuff, books, and clothes, but not really any toys. I remember him being upset about that, and this year I decided to go all out with the toys, since soon I won't be able to do the toy thing. He's growing up, and won't be into that in a few short years, so I really enjoyed seeing him so excited. Isn't that what it's all about?

My eldest got the only thing he really wanted ( besides a cell phone) on his wish list- an IPod Touch. Man, even I don't have one of those, and  can I say that I was a little jealous of him for a few seconds when he opened it up? I'm excited for him b/c he's passionate about music, and I remember how excited I was years ago when i got a Walkman for Christmas one year, when music was my life. ( yes, I'm  THAT old. ;p)
 I got a much needed update to my old and dated PSE program from Bob. ( thanks hon!!)  I've just installed PSE 8, and can't wait to try it out- right now I'm waiting for it to copy all my 4,000 + photos.
 Other than gifts, our Christmas was cozy and fun, and very much focused on family. It was perfect. We stayed home for the first time ever as a family this year ( family dinner is tomorrow) and we all stayed in our pj's the whole day, lounging, playing, watching movies,  napping and eating lots of Christmas treats. Very relaxed, and much needed R&R. Just perfect. :)

Here's a few WIP pages from my DD. Keep in mind that I"m working out of order and off the cuff when I can get something done, so these are just very simple and basic pages that I may or may not add to later.
I can see the benefit of doing the album beforehand, as it's hard to decide where the pages will go and how they will fit if you're doing them like I am, one at a time. But I will make it work, and will post the entire thing once it's all assembled, so you can get a better idea of what it looks like once it's all put together. :)

Day 10 ( first page of spread is not done, but idea is there)

Day 16

 a very simple page with a full page photo and journaling about my thoughts for that day. Thinking heavily about my Mom and MIL that particular day and missing them alot.

Day 17

a page about my Flickr addiction, using a mosaic from my favourite photos file there. This page literally took me about 5 minute to put together, but I`m so liking how it turned out.

I have to leave you with a photo of the last day's Lego advent calendar figure. We were pretty sure Santa would make an appearance the last day, and here he is! The kids really adored this calendar. It truly was one of those times when you're happy to have doled out the $$ for something a little extravagent.Worth every penny for my Lego loving boys. :)

I'd like to wish all of my blogger buddies & readers a beautiful and peaceful Christmas- I hope your day was as perfect as mine has been. It has been wonderful to connect with all of you through the magic of the internet- thank you for your friendship, comments, and presence here.

Merry Christmas to all of you!

xoxox