The Schmid's of Christmas Past...

A quick look back at Christmas 2011...

 Benny visited with Old St. Nick.

 He worked on special gifts for grandparents and cousins (Madison/Ian- recognize the mosaic peace sign "before" it broke to pieces in the mail :(

Benny and Mommy went to the store and bought a special gift to bring to the homeless shelter.  Ben hand delivered the gift and told the woman, that runs the shelter, that he really hopes one of the children (preferably a boy, he reminded her) will love the present.  He also decided that he wants to do this every year- you're on kiddo!

 We began our 2011 festivities on Christmas Eve at Grammy and Grumpy's.

We opened our holiday "crackers" at dinner and then all sported our stylish crowns for the rest of the evening (pink is definitely your color, Daddy!)

Benny got to open a gift from Mommy and Daddy and was very excited to find his very own guitar.  (Ooh- bad memory flashback: See those light blue bands on my wrists?  Those were for the nausea that I had for nearly 4 months.  Yep, Sammy made his presence known early on- he didn't want to miss a thing).

 Rockin' Out!

Technology wowed us all this year.  We used Face Time to talk to Auntie E and Uncle Paul on Christmas Eve.  Christmas morning we connected with Papa and JuJu, the North Carolina Harmon contingent, and the Agren crew.  How cool is it that we were able to open gifts live all the way from New Zealand to Maine!?

Before we snuggled up for the evening, Benny made sure to leave a treat out for Santa and his reindeer.  Look at the size of that cookie- poor Santa might not have enough energy to make it to the next house!

 Benny helped open gifts.

 Grammy and Grumpy enjoyed their annual grand-kid calendars.

And we spent most of the day with Batman, Robin, and Superman keeping a watchful eye on us!  Auntie Skylar, this was a huge hit!

 Robin serenaded us.

Clyde snuck in a nap, but not before we could dress him up with his annual holiday bow.

 Everyone sported their new wares (safety first, Daddy, safety first).

 Lego's on Christmas morning will NEVER get old.

 After breakfast the boys took Benny's new robot bike for a test ride.

 Then after lunch, we begged Grammy for an ice cream cone.

And were VERY proud of ourself when we nailed it with a convincing case (a little Kyle in the making).

During the holiday break, Benny's preschool hosted an event at a local coffee shop displaying paintings by the kiddos- the theme, "Peace".  Benny labeled his photo, "Peace Moon, Peace Sun, Peace Rocketship".

Ben tore it up at Mt. Bachelor each Saturday, for 10 weeks of Mighty Mites ski lessons, allowing Mommy and Daddy to enjoy lots of fresh powder turns and mellow pregnant lady x-country ski outings.

Always a smile each Saturday afternoon as we headed home for a little rest and relaxation- so he'll be back at it again this season.

And guess what... Papa and JuJu took me to Disney World after Christmas!!  Look out Mickey, here I come!