Travis volunteered our house for the kids' Christmas party for the entire squadron this year, and it turned out to be quite an event!! First of all, I would like to document that it hasn't rained in Del Rio in MONTHS, but it was pouring down rain on Saturday morning, the day of the party. This only made things more interesting!! After some rearranging and moving all the outdoor activities inside, we managed to make it all work out. The only thing that didn't get moved inside was the deep fryer, but Travis put up an umbrella and a fence (to keep the kids away from the hot oil), and he still managed to make some awesomely delicious fried turkeys! We also initially did not set up the bouncy castle because of the rain, but after the kids had been here an hour, it became an absolute necessity. So, the guys set it up and let the kids bounce away their sugar highs!! And cleanup was surprisingly easy, although I think I will be vacuuming up sprinkles and wiping up sticky spots for weeks to come...
The party was a great excuse to put up all the Christmas decorations, and then once we set up all the craft tables, our house was full to the brim with Christmas cheer!! I never made an official count, but I think we had about 20-25 kids show up, along with their parents. After the kids left, we had some other adults come over (or come back after dropping off their kids) and stay to hang out for a while. Travis rented a standing heater for the patio, so we were able to sit outside. It was a really fun party, and I think everybody had a great time!!
Some photos from the epic event:
Activity #1: Make your own gingerbread house!
Some of these kids got pretty creative!
(Most of them just sat there and ate the candy
while Daddy tried to put graham crackers together with frosting...)
Activity #2: Make Christmas ornaments out of pipe cleaners and beads
(This turned into a jewelry making station, which was way more fun anyways!)
Activity #3: Making Rudolph out of candy canes
(Really though, it was the "eat a candy cane while playing with glue" station...)
Activity #4: Making stained glass ornaments out of die cuts and tissue paper
(The older kids loved this one!!)
Activity #5: Decorating wreaths made out of green paper plates
(These turned out really cute!!)
Activity #6: Decorating (and then eating) sugar cookies and gingerbread men
(This was the most popular activity, by far)
More sugar cookie madness...
At one point, I had to ask... "Nicholas, is there even a cookie under all that frosting and sprinkles??"
Activity #7: the bouncy castle
And, finally, a visit from SANTA!!
Travis' friend Russ accepted the task of dressing as Santa for an hour at the party, and he was a huge success!
Some kids cried, others listed off the things they wanted, and one gave Santa the third degree:
"What did I ask you for last year?...Your boots aren't right...Where are your gloves?...How did you get here?...Why aren't you fatter??" (Ahh, from the mouths of babes...)
Barrett's first Christmas with Santa!!
Even Travis took a picture with Santa this year :-)
Barrett (3 months old), Ainsley (1month old), Trey (2 months old), and Anna (1.5 years old)
The theme of the party was "tacky Christmas sweaters" so here are our outfits for the evening.
(And yes, those are red women's pants that we are both wearing...)
Shana, Ramani, JJ, and Travis
(Apparently we all shop at Walmart, although Shana and Ramani both added some bling to their sweaters!!)
Travis' turkeys were a huge hit! Delicious, as always!
