Mattie's 3rd Christmas in Heaven

Dear Mattie,

Today, you would be exactly two and a half years old.  It has become a bit of a tradition that I write you this Christmas letter on your half year birthday which falls just five days after Christmas.  Christmas is always one of our favorite times of year as a family, and I know that you would love it as much as your brothers do.  You would run out on Christmas morning to see what Santa had brought you.  I can't help but think about what you would ask for from Santa for Christmas or what cute outfits you would wear in our family pictures.  I can only imagine what an adorable little toddler/preschooler you would be and how much you would make us all laugh as you would terrorize your brothers and get into their toys.  I am sure you and Brody would have both loved his favorite Christmas present, a little playhouse/restaurant.  I know you would have loved playing with your new baby brother this Christmas as he has been crawling around.  I bet you would have helped him open his presents too because you are a wonderful big sister.  I would have loved seeing your little pile of girl presents around the tree on Christmas morning and seeing your face light up as you ran with your brothers towards the tree and the presents.  I am sure you would have some specific requests for presents this year, and I hate that I don't know what you would have liked.  Would you like Disney's Frozen characters and dress up clothes like most little girls these days?  I bet you would like Doc McStuffins and Princess Sofia like your big brother Brody.  Ha!  I know you would definitely be more into Christmas this year.  I do hope you enjoyed watching over all of us again this year as we celebrated with your new little brother.  I am sure you enjoyed quite a celebration in heaven too.  We did not forget you, our precious little angel, and we never will.  You will always be missed.  Here are some of the ways we remembered and honored you this Christmas:

We took a Christmas wreath to decorate your special place.

And our Christmas decorations wouldn't be complete without your little tree.

The little handmade stocking Brody and I made last year on our little stair banister banner. 

Brewster reminded us all to draw pictures or write letters to you to fill your stocking. 

Brody did a beautiful job writing and drawing pictures for you. 

Evan drew a beautiful picture of an angel for our favorite little angel. 

Daddy wrote such a beautiful letter to you.  He loves you so!

We decided to prepare our Operation Christmas Child gift in honor of you for another little girl about your age.  

We all picked out some little gifts we thought you would like, including headbands and hairbows, socks, gloves, a little hair comb set, a toothbrush, some books, and a puzzle.  We also included one of your special bunnies that we hope another little girl will get to enjoy.  

We wrote a note telling that little girl about you. 

Your Christmas Wardrobe:

A little red dress would have been essential.  You would have looked so cute and stylish in a sweater dress and some leggings and ballet flats. 

Or this one with a little tulle skirt. 

I like this classic little black dress. 

And this little silver, sparkly dress with a tulle skirt. 

Maybe a little Santa dress for fun pictures with your brothers and to sit on Santa's lap. 

A cute little shirt. 

And some Christmas pajamas. 

These would be cute with the little matching tutu. 

And this little elf set would have matched your brothers' Santa, elf, and reindeer ones.  You and Brody would have been the perfect little elf duo. 

Some gifts for you:

I am sure you would love dressing up like a princess, and you would probably like Princess Sofia. 

You may like your very own Elsa and Anna dolls from Frozen.  All little girls these days seem to. 

And a Princess Sofia tiara.

Or maybe an Elsa dress. 

You would likely watch Doc McStuffins with your brother Brody and may want your own doctor costume. 

Your big brother Brody had a Scout puppy that talked to him, and I am sure you may like his girl pal, Violet. 

Or a stuffed Princess Sofia doll. 

Your brothers all love their Lego sets, and you would likely want your own. 

Or a Doc McStuffins one. 

I hope you enjoyed your Christmas in heaven, and I hope you enjoyed watching our celebrations too.  We can't wait to celebrate together as a complete family one day.  Until then, we will go on remembering you and including you as best we can.  We love you, baby girl!  Merry Christmas!

Love,
Your Mommy

Brewster's Adventures {2015}

Oh, Brewster the Elf on the Shelf.  If I had known how much work you would require the entire month before Christmas, I am not sure if I would have caved to the pressure to start this little traditional.  I know you are so fun for the kids and that they have grown quite attached to you in the last few years, but there are so many late nights/early mornings when I had some regrets.  We powered through this year, and you gave the kids many smiles and laughs over some of your crazy antics.  Some days you were extra creative and ingenious, but many days you were just too lazy to even move.  I guess we will call it a successful year for you.

Brewster arrived with a little flare with a message written with some sweet tarts from the boys' Halloween candy and a special letter. 

Then, he was up to some mischief when he swiped our stockings and replaced them with our underwear, even a diaper for Mattox. 

He also toilet papered the tree AGAIN.  There was more toilet paper, but Brody pulled some off. 

Then, he built himself a rocket to make his trip to the North Pole faster and more efficient. 

He sweetly reminded the boys of the real reason for the season with coloring sheets for Jesus' birthday. 

Brewster's coloring skills are pretty phenomenal considering he has no fingers or opposable thumbs.  

Brody and Evan both did an excellent job on their coloring sheets. 

Brewster built us a snowman again.  This time it was out of toilet paper rolls in the bathroom. 

Brewster was a trickster when he put his name on all of our stockings.  

He either hung himself or was trying to be a superhero again and flying from our dining room light fixture. 

Wearing his special B superhero cloak. 

Ready to cheer the Panthers to another victory in their almost perfect season.  Sigh.  We gave up our perfect season in last week's crappy loss to the Falcons after we had just defeated them in a blowout game of 38-0.  Sigh. 

Brewster decided to throw his hat into the ring and run for President.  I think he has a good chance on that platform of free hot chocolate and candy canes for everyone.  

Or maybe he will do better as a psychiatrist.  He borrowed this idea from Lucy from Peanuts after the boys had just seen the new movie. 

He sweetly reminded the boys to write letters or draw pictures for their sweet sister.  

Brewster's sweet letter to Mattie

Brody did such a great job with his letter and pictures.  

Evan's angel drawing was excellent, and his sweet letter makes me cry. 

Daddy also wrote a sweet letter to his favorite girl. 

Brewster had a little fun "snowball" fight with his superhero friends.  

Brewster made his very own little Christmas tree. 

Chef Brewster was ready on Christmas Eve to bake Jesus' birthday cake. 

And he was waiting on Christmas morning with a letter from Santa and the empty cookie plate to see what the boys got on Christmas morning. 

Santa & His Crew

It is going to take me a little while to go through all the pictures from Christmas, but in the meantime, I wanted to share these little gems of my boys dressed in their Christmas pajamas.  These are all re-used pajamas, and I just loved getting to use them another year.  Brody was our little Santa in 2011, and Evan was the elf.  This year, Mattox was our jolly little Santa, and Brody was his elf helper.  Evan was their trusty reindeer.

Little Santa did not want to stay put for these pictures so his reindeer had his hands hoofs full trying to hold him.

Oh my, that picture of Evan and Mattox hugging is just the best.  Mattox was really hugging Evan and wrapped his arms around him. 

The elf wasn't too cooperative here.

And these two really do love one another although they do their share of fighting too.  And the elf decided to turn into a Christmas monster here.  These were actually taken earlier, and I just had to share them. 

Little Santa was trying to escape with Elf's hat.  Haha!