Leila's First School Concert

 Leila had her first ever school concert the Wednesday before Winter Vacation! The first graders sang, danced and played Orff instruments. I got to snap a few pictures of the dress rehearsal...a perk of teaching at Leila's school! 

The kids looked so nice for the show that Wednesday night! Leila and her friend, Emerson. 

We celebrated a job well done with fro-yo at Menchie's on our way home from the concert. I am sure that there will be many more holiday concerts in Leila's school career since she loves music! 

Santa Pictures 2014

Santa moved from the mall this year to the fairgrounds downtown. It was a little interesting. We had to make reservations to see him and they filled up very quickly! Leila asked Santa for a horse stable and a new Barbie. Then she told me a week later that she was really hoping that Santa would bring her an American Girl too. "Mom, you know that Santa always brings something you asked for and something that you knows you are wishing for!" Okay, luckily,  Chris and I were able to let Santa know! 

Santa's new location had some activities to partake of before and after your Santa photos, but we really didn't spend much time doing these things. Instead we took silly photos of ourselves while we waited. 

I love looking at Leila's Santa pictures over the years. We don't have a picture for when she was 1-year-old. We chose not to take her because she was a little frightened. 

 4-months-old

 2-years-old

 3-years-old

 4-years-old

 5-years-old

 6-years-old

And for an easier comparison AND because I love photogrid!

PNB Nutcracker 2014

We introduced Leila to the Nutcracker last Christmas and when we asked if she was interested in seeing it this year, she jumped at the chance! We had the same crew as last year, Leila, Gramma, Grammy and me, plus Aunt Kathy joined us! I grew up seeing the Nutcracker every Christmas with Mom and Aunt Kathy, so it was super special for me to have Aunt Kathy come along and experience it with Leila. We headed up before the matinee with enough time to each lunch at the Armory and visit the PNB Gift Shop. 

Grammy is a good sport...we made her take a picture with the Rat King!If you know my mother, this is quite the feat! 

Leila never wants her picture taken, but she begged for one in this silly teacup. I obliged.

At intermission, we headed upstairs to the Nutcracker Suites for a cupcake bar and yummy treats. I LOVE that PNB does this! We always saw the Portland production and this was never an option at intermission in Portland. 

We finished the evening with a second visit to the Armory, a turn at conducting the model train, listening to the bagpipers play and grabbing a Starbucks for the road. There is something so magical about the music of the Nutcracker and I am so tickled that it seems to touch Leila's soul in the same way. I love this tradition that the girls have created! Here's to next year...our third annual trip!

St. Lucia Festival

 Leila participated in her very first St. Lucia Festival this December! Each year, PLU holds a Lucia Festival and children are welcomed to be junior Lucias, tomtens (Swedish elves) or star boys. St. Lucia Day is a Swedish holiday that celebrates Lucia, an Italian saint who took care of the Swedish people during the winter. She would bring food and water to the people, walking through the cold and snowy country on winter nights. Her name, Lucia, means light. Lucia Festivals are celebrated each year on December 13th and children dress up as either Lucia, star boys (to represent the night sky) or tomtens. We had an AMAZING time! Leila and the group performed a few songs in Swedish and the speaker shared all about Sweden's Lucia festivities. 

 The entire Festival was lit by candles. PLU's C.K. Hall was beautiful! 

After the singing and Lucia crowning were finished, there were yummy pepperkakors and Lussekatter to eat and dancing around the Christmas tree with more Swedish singing. Jultomten even visited the children! He called each child by name and presented them with a gift. 

 Jultomten gave Leila a Lucia doll. What a keepsake! We have already marked our calendar for next year's Lucia Festival! We are proud to be participating in something our ancestors would have long ago. 

A Christmas Story: The Musical

 We added a ticket for the holiday show at the 5th Ave this year so ALL of us could see A Christmas Story. I think it won't be long before a fifth ticket is a permanent part of our subscription (we go with Mike and Shawn as well). Leila is quite the theatre-lover and we think that's pretty rad! A Christmas Story was leaps and bounds better than it was when it debuted a few years back. Chris and I enjoyed it so much more! 

We had watched the movie with Leila the night before so she knew all about the pink bunny suit. It was a very cute idea to have a photo spot in the foyer. 

After the show, the five of us walked down to see the tree. Honestly, it was rather underwhelming. But we did manage to get a picture without the huge billboards blocking half the tree. It was a fun day in Seattle with the family and definitely put us all in the holiday spirit!

Family Skate

 We hadn't been to our rink in a while and we decided to remedy that in early December. Plus we needed to make sure that Leila's skills would be ready for our traditional Christmas Eve skate at the end of the month. Like always, we had a fabulous time together on the ice! 

Swedish Craft Night at PLU

Leila participated in her first St. Lucia Festival this December...more about that to come. But because of her participation in that she was asked to come to Swedish Craft Night too! Her and I spent a few hours on a Monday evening getting to meet the other children in the festival, practicing the festival songs, eating pepperkakor and learning how to make Swedish woven hearts. Leila caught on rather quickly and was able to make enough to bring three home with us for our tree as well as leave 10 or so with the PLU students to take to a local nursing home. What a fun experience!

Tavern Tree

 I always think each year's tree is the best....and this year was no exception. I loved our tree! Walking around the tree farm, deciding as a family and bringing it home always makes for a great weekend activity. "Let's get a picture in front of the tree." Here's what my family did...

Lussekatter

The first weekend of December, I tried my hand at making Lussekatter. These are Lucia buns and are traditionally served on St. Lucia Day in Sweden. Overall, I think our buns were pretty close in taste, but they need a little help in the presentation department. Leila was excited to help me shape the Lussekatter and place raisins in each curl. I was excited to try something new and get my Swedish on....as my jokester of a hubby says. I'm sure they will improve on the next go around.