Sunday, December 16, 2012

Santa Baby, Baby Jesus, and Easy Centerpiece

It was a busy weekend for Santa and his helpers.

We had our family Santa party, and there were lots of preparations and an under the weather elf to get it done!

But I didn't let it undermine my "elf esteem",  and though not as well prepared as I would have liked, the party went on.

How  cute are they?  Mr. and Mrs. Claus, Baby style.

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My youngest gson, Eamon and his one month older cousin, Ella stole the show!

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We had a Living Nativity, unpracticed, with simple costumes.

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The Holy Family and some shepherds...

Dec 2012 110 The angel and 3 Kings arrived, I see one of the shepherds had to have a drink from his sippy cup!

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Eamon is in the Moses basket, and little Ella in the lamb.
  My gdau was the narrator, and all the gsons had a part, with cousins and friends joining in

A junior Santa came to see the baby Jesus, and wish everyone a Merry Christmas.  It was adorable, and reminded everyone the reason for the season.

That being said, the kids also were excited to have Santa and Mrs. Claus visit and deliver gifts.

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The children whispered their wish list in Santa's ear.

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Seeing all those happy faces brings the spirit of Christmas to your heart!  Though our hearts were heavy for our neighbors in CT who suffered such a horrendous loss on Friday, we cherished the time with these beautiful children.

After the party, many of us attended Mass and prayed for those who lost loved ones.  They need all of our prayers.

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Of course, what's a party without food!Dec 2012 097
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Plenty of desserts to end off a sweet day!  I made devil food cupcakes, dipped in chocolate and topped with whipped cream.  The little Santa's Workshop pole signs on top were via Martha Stewart.
Dec 2012 158 Dec 2012 156 Home made butter cookies and chocolate men.

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Death by chocolate and a full pan of Apple Crisp with vanilla ice cream.  It was being warmed when I took the picture.

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  The tables...

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Each child got a red sack filled with gifts and candy bags.
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A Christmas bulb pop...
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I put some floral foam in a red basket, some mylar paper over it and poked holes through the paper so they could stand up.

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My usual take home, a loaf of Irish Soda, Chocolate, chocolate chip or Pumpkin Raisin Bread.

There was also a gift boutique, lol.  I had an assortment of little gifts, ornaments, etc.  Each child picked a gift, and put it in a gift bag for their mom.   Fun!

Here is a close up of the centerpieces.

It started as a 2.00 faux wreath...

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I wired in fresh greens from my yard, and pine cones.

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Added fresh mums and baby's breath, and a hurricane and pillar candle in the middle, both on sale at JoAnns.

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The wreaths can be reused, as well as the bows and candle holders, so actually very economical.  The only things that would have to be replaced next year are the flowers and greens.  The whole thing cost less than 10.00 each, and as I said, can be reused.

That's my story for tonight!  It was a very busy week!  I hope those who came enjoyed themselves, I know the kids did!

Thanks for stopping by!

I am joining The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sunday
Susan for Met. Monday
Yvonne for On the Menu Monday
Kathe for You're going to Love It Tues.
Marty for Tabletop Tues.
Gollum for Foodie Friday
See you Wed for Let's Dish!  Don't forget to follow and leave a comment to be entered in the gift card giveaway .  Winner will be announced on the 26th, in time to take advantage of those post Christmas sales!

41 comments:

  1. The children dressed for the Christmas story are just the cutest! Love the sippy cup : ))

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  2. What sweet sweet babies. The whole "nativity" scene is just precious beyond words. I love those centerpieces...easy and beautiful. Have a good week- xo Diana

    ps. Did I send you the graphic for Silence and Support for Tuesday? The whole blogging community is supposedly going silent for that day. If you need the graphic/link let me know-

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  3. WHAT AN EVENT!!!! Wow, wish I got invited to a party like that. I love the littles all dressed up in their Santa outfits. I just bought the last one at Target for my little Jacquelyn - of course she promptly made a messy of it but oh, well...I love your nativity and the stage you have. We always do it at home so it is just in the entry. Everyone and everything looks wonderful fromt the food to the pops and the giftbags. I am just overwhelmed. You are amazing.

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  4. What a beautiful celebration. The Living Nativity is so special, these children are so beautiful, God bless them, and your centerpieces are wonderful. Love all the goodies and giveaways. (Who played Santa and Mrs. Claus??) ;-) xo

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    1. What do you mean "played" Barbara? They were the real deal! :)

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  5. Oh,how precious (and adorable)are the sweet little ones in these photos and how cherished they all are! Our nation carries a deep loss and sadness for the children in CT and our hearts cry for the parents and families so devastated.

    May these little ones in this Christmas event grow to bring love and peace to our world :)

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  6. I am so glad your family has such a joyous and fun celebration! I love the living nativity and your tables are so pretty and festive. A good time with family makes memories that will last a lifetime!
    hugs, Linda

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  7. The itty bitty Santa and Mrs. are just too cute K! Looks like you had a great party! Hope you feel better soon:@)

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  8. Precious, precious children! Great party.

    Such sadness in our nation.

    Have a wonderful Christmas.

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  9. Those babies are so cute I squealed out loud!

    The rest of the party - just WOW WOW WOW!!!!!

    You sure know how to put one on, so impressive!

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  10. What sweet and precious children!!! And the Nativity was awesome!!! Great time with family and lasting memories!!! Merry Christmas....

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  11. Such thoughtful preparations. I hope that you're starting to feel better. You've fought sickness more than once in the past few months. I adore your celebration, and I think that I gained 3 pounds just looking at all the delicious desserts. Thanks for inviting us for a peak. Merry Christmas! Cherry Kay

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  12. Mr. and Mrs. Claus definitely stole the show. They are absolutely adorable! The whole party looked like such a wonderful celebration. I just love the things you do and the style with which you do them.

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  13. I love the shepherd drinking from the sippy cup! He worked up a thirst :-) The children are all so precious. Thanks for sharing the celebration. We enjoy the living nativity at our church very much. Unpracticed or very little.

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  14. Kathleen, what a wonderful way to celebrate Christmas with family and having the children act out the nativity is such a great idea. Baby Eamon is such a good looking little guy - wish I could just kiss those cheeks :)

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  15. What a fun time! Christmas is really all about the children isn't it? And what fun! Loved those cupcakes and the centerpieces -- I like reusable!

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  16. Wow you guys sure have a wonderful celebration. The elves are toooo cute. I can only imagine how much they all look forward to this party, young and old(er)alike. Your cupcakes sure look good.

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  17. Wowzers, what a fabulous event for all! And to think someone was under the weather and still performed so well. Love the live nativity! I can see why those 2 little ones stole the show. So sweet! The centerpieces are great, thanks for the tips on making them. Blessings!

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  18. Everything looks so nice! The centerpiece is beautiful!...as are those precious babies!

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  19. OH, Kathleen. This is so wonderful that it sort of makes me cry! No kidding. I love all of this. I'm going to have to read and reread your little party touches and do something similar next year. Merry, merry, merry Christmas.

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  20. What a wonderful, FUN party you hosted! I am so sorry you weren't feeling well and can't believe all you accomplished!!! Everything looks womnderful, the live nativity is adorable! Christmas certainly IS for the children, I wish I had some grands but that is not to be. Gods plan for me. The food looks wonderful, I am hungry now:) XO, Pinky

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  21. Kathleen, this is just the ultimate!!!! What a great family activity!!! This is truly one of the best family Christmas celebrations I have ever seen! Everyone is involved and everyone feels special. This is so cool!!!!! The kids all are precious, and I just can't believe how well-behaved they were for the photos!!! Those light bulb pops are fun as they can be! I've never seen anything like those. You MADE those??!?!?!! You did a fantastic job on the centerpieces, too! What a beautiful setting for your family! I'm sure they appreciated it all even more given the fact you weren't feeling "your-elf"! ;-) Wonderful, wonderful...just like the Johnny Mathis song!

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    1. Yes, I made them, A. Thanks! I made all the desserts except the rainbow cookies. DH peeled 6 lbs of apples for me for the crisp, which was a big help!

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  22. Oh my gosh they are SO adorable! Absolutely precious! It looks like a lovely celebration, Kathleen. And my prayers join yours for those poor sweet babies. A very Merry Christmas to you and yours.

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  23. What a wonderful party. It brings back memories of being in Christmas pageants when I was a very young child. The kids are so adorable and all your beautiful touches really make it special. I hope you and your family have a very happy holiday.

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  24. So cute. I'm sure everyone had a great time. I'm sure you did. The living nativity looks lovely, along with the center pieces. Great idea to add fresh to the faux wreath.

    - The Tabelscaper

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  25. I am so loving this Kathleen!
    From the live nativity, to the beautiful children, oh golly those babies are adorable! And your centerpiece and all of the amazing food!
    Thanks for the tutorial too, loved that!
    Just a question?? Kathleen do you do all the work for this yourself?
    If so, your super woman!
    Hugs friend,
    Cindy

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  26. Kathleen - I will never get over how much energy you have and how creative you are!! This party was unbelievable! Those babies are too adorable and will certainly make your Christmas season brighter. Thank you for sharing this - I smiled the whole way through the post. Merry Christmas!!

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  27. Eamon and his cousin are adorable :) The Living Nativity is just wonderful. Everyone looks like they are enjoying themselves. Another fabulous party! If you weren't a teacher, you could have been a party planner :)
    Merry Christmas, Kathleen, to you and your beautiful family.

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  28. Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus are so adorable! What a wonderful family gathering, Kathleen, and I can't believe you pulled off so much being under the weather. I'm sure all of your wonderful contributions were very much appreciated and well worth the effort!

    Merry Christmas, Kathleen!

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  29. You have had a very very busy week!!!! What adorable children. I just love the nativity scene. You need to frame that picture or put it on a Christmas card!!!
    You are making the most wonderful Christmas memories, Kathleen! Such a heartwarming post!!!
    Christmas hugs!

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  30. What a wonderful Christmas party! The grandbabes are darling...gotta save that photo to embarrass them when they're older. :)
    Love the living nativity and the shepherd with his sippy cup...lol.
    Thanks for sharing your family's Christmas party.
    Hugs,
    Babs

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  31. What a wonderful Christmas party, Kathleen! The children really made it special. fter so much sadness in CT it make us all cherish our children and grasndchildren even more than ever.

    Your wreath centerpieces are fabulous! You always have such good ideas!

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  32. Kathleen, what a wonderful idea to have a family party. Your wreath centerpiece look beautiful. I'm in awe that you make these. You make it all sound easy, and I know it isn't. It's a lot of work. Cute photos of all those sweet children! ~ Sarah

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  33. What a beautiful family, Kathleen! I can see why those babies in their Santa outfits stole the show. They are adorable! Your tables look so pretty and the inexpensive wreaths look beautiful all decorated. Your definitely the hostess with the mostess. laurie

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  34. Thank you so much for sharing this post; it brought back good memories and brought tears to my eyes. They are adorable.
    Rita

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  35. I remember seeing your family celebration last year. You are amazing! What a fun and beautiful celebration! Merry Christmas!

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  37. The pics of Eamon are so cute..a perfect Jesus. Seems Christmas isn't complete without little children..you're so lucky!
    Easy-peasy centerpiece.. especially like the idea of reuseable!!

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  38. So wonderful! Eamon and his little cousin are just precious!! All of the kids look to be enjoying themselves immensely. Your hard work paid off!

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