I want to start off this post saying that I forgot our camera when we went up to my parents for Christmas. I didn't get to capture ANY of the fun moments we had and I am so sad about that. So, I'm waiting for my brothers to post some of theirs on Facebook, so I can steal them. They didn't take nearly as many pictures as I would have, but I will take what I can get. Forgetting the camera is soooo not like me, which makes me even more upset. Anyways...
Our plan was to head up to Elbow Lake on Thursday night being I we had Friday off work, but as the day went on it turned out that the weather was too dangerous at my parents for us to travel, that we had to wait a day (well, a night actually). We brought the girls to eat at the Farmington Steak House (our new favorite place - and if you live in the area, you should totally try it, if you haven't already!!).
We woke up Friday morning to snow in Farmington, but we were able to shovel out and make our way out of the Twin Cities and to clear roads. Yay! It was so fun to see my brother's, parents and nephews - which is what Christmas is all about, being with family! This Christmas was special because ALL of us were there and together. With Adam and I and my older brother Geoff and his wife having to switch holidays every other year, it doesn't happen all that often that we're there together. So, it was nice for us and very special for my parents to have all their kids AND grandkids home at the same time.
We spent Christmas Eve afternoon and evening at my Grandparents house on my Mom's side. Unfortunately due to the weather, one of my aunts and her family wasn't able to make it. They sure missed out, because we had a TON of fun. To sum up this whole Christmas in one word it would be "laughter". We laughed so much. For example, when presents were being handed out, my cousin Tony wasn't getting anything - so he shouts out, "If you see one that says Tony on it...I'm over here." You had to be there, but it was FUNNY! And then my cousin Allen opened his present and it was a deer puzzle and he was sooo excited and him and his sister were talking about how they were so excited to work on it that night - and then he opened the box and there was beef jerky inside, not a puzzle. LOL My brother Ben got these super cool jammie pants with guitars on them and all of a sudden we all realized that he had them on but non of us could figure out how he got them on while sitting in the middle of the living room - nobody saw him leave - or change...weird!! haha And then there were sentimental moments where we had tears - like when my Grandma and Grandpa opened a gift that was from all of us that my cousin Stacey made. It was a memory jar with all our memories and stories we remember with Grandpa and Grandma - they are to take one out every day of the year to read. Such an AWESOME gift.
We had church that evening. It just wasn't quite the same without the big church choir that they normally have. My brother Tiny, my Grandma and our friend Hillary sing in it and they always look down at my kids from the choir loft and wave. Hillary sat up there cuz her Mom played the organ, but it just wasn't the same without the traditional Christmas songs the choir sings.
Alexa and her cousin AJ had this plan to set alarm clocks and wake up at midnight to catch Santa at the house. Luckily they got pretty tired out playing that they slept right through.
Lillian woke up Christmas morning and said, "Santa's here". She told me that she heard Santa say, "Ho, Ho, Ho" and the noises of the reindeer hooves on the roof. Alexa said she heard jingle bells, but she was so tired she didn't want to wake up to go check things out.
It was such a fun Christmas day. The kids were super excited. We had breakfast, opened gifts and had the best of times. Alexa got the bumble bee pillow pet, a vtech computer, some clothes, lip gloss, a book....and Lillian got barbie dolls, my little ponies, clothes, slippers. They were so happy and smiled the whole time. Even though I am kicking myself for forgetting my camera at least I can say that I enjoyed every single moment with them and wasn't always worried about being behind the lens taking pictures.
My Dad went and picked up my Grandpa from the Veteran's home Christmas afternoon, so he could be with us on Christmas. Geoff and Crystal brought him back on their way home. After things quieted down a bit, Tiny's girlfriend Courtney came and we played games. We started out playing Alexa's favorite new game, Farkel. Since I suck at it, it's not my favorite game so I voted to play something else. Balderdash is always a sure hit at our house so that's what we played next. I don't think I've laughed so hard in my life - that's all I can say. We were up til the wee hours of the night and it was the best way to top off the Christmas holiday. So much fun!
We left Sunday after church and home to have our own little Christmas at our house. Lillian slept most of the way home and Alexa played her computer. The girls were super excited to see that Santa had been to our house, too. Alexa got her American Girl doll (look-a-like) and Lillian got a baby among many other things.
We had a blast playing with all their new toys and games, they took a bath, ate supper, played some more..Alexa rolled a 5950 in Farkel..(amazing!) and then off to bed. Adam and I watched National Lampoons Christmas Vacation. The best Christmas movie of all time and I could watch it over and over and over and laugh just as hard each time.
Yay for Christmas and BOOOOO for being back at work today. Alexa is on winter break this week, so my Mom and Dad so kindly came down to watch her for the next 2 days. We let Lilli skip school today and probably tomorrow so she can be with Grandpa and Grandma, too.
I hope that you all had a very Merry Christmas and enjoyed being with your family/friends as much as we all did. We have been blessed with such a great year and we are so ever thankful!
A huge thanks to our neighbor's Jamie and Debbie for watching our dog, Chip, while we were away for the holidays.
