Christmas: Part One of Two

Thursday afternoon, Ricky got home early from work so I was able to run out and do some more errands while the kids were napping.  The crowds were horrible again but I got it done so that was good.  That evening we let the kids each open one of their gifts because I couldn't stand it anymore and really wanted them to open one:)  I had gotten them each a board game, chutes and ladders and Candy Land.  So we spent the rest of the evening playing with them.  Jo is a little young yet to play nicely with them but she'll get there.

Friday morning Joanna requested that I make sausage and pancakes for breakfast so of course I did.  After our yummy breakfast we all bundled up again and went to go ice skating.  Ricky had gotten Joanna a pair of her very own little double runners and she looked so cute in them.

She didn't last very long on the ice because it was really cold Friday morning, but she tried it a little.  After 10 minutes she got tired of it and waited in the van the rest of the time.

Chase lasted a little bit longer but it was really cold and windy so he gave up after half an hour and joined Joanna in the magic minivan.

We had taken Dominic with us and he had fun running around on the ice in his sneakers for a while.  looks like another big kid had fun skating too ;)

After a little while Ricky let Dominic try out his skates.  Yes, his 9 year old feet were big enough for Ricky's skates!  Actually, Ricky's ice skates are 2 sizes too small for him but still, Dominic has big feet.  He was so excited to try out the skates and did really well.  It was his first time and he only fell two times.  I think he would have stayed all day if we had said it was OK.

[BTW, I loooove my new camera :) ]

We got home around 11:00 and I made everyone hot chocolate before Patty came to get Dominic.  In the afternoon we let the kids open their second gift from us.  Joanna got a baby doll that I had searched high and low for since I had a specific style in mind.  It has blond hair and blue eyes and has a soft body and is a little princess, just perfect for our Princess Joanna.

She liked it so much she let Daddy give her a kiss :)

Chase, we got a remote control army helicopter that he had been begging for for months. 

Saturday morning we got up bright and early and I started preparing things for Christmas with Ricky's family.  We went over to his parents house at 10:00am to have brunch.  The kids were so excited and couldn't wait for the festivities to begin.

Ricky's parents never put up a tree so we always just pile up the gifts on their chair, I don't know why I find it funny but I do :)

Alma took Katy as soon as we got there and held her as much as she could the whole day.  She just loves holding and rocking babies and it's so nice to see how much she enjoys her grand kids.

I LOVE this picture:

she rocked Katy to sleep after brunch.  Our brunch was delicious!  This was the second year in a row that we decided to do brunch and I think this is going to be a long standing tradition, we all enjoy it so much then have the rest of the day to hang out.  Patty made stuffed french toast, Alma made an egg casserole and I brought bacon wrapped sausages and fruit and dip, and of course we had lots of coffee.  The whole gang (except for me) stuffed after the wonderful meal:

After we ate we retired to the living room to open gifts and boy were there a lot of them, compared to other years.  We had decided not to exchange names this year and just buy for everyone since we have a smaller family anyway.  The kids got lots of toys and super cute clothes.  Joanna really loves coloring so Patty had gotten her a giant coloring book and her own set of crayons and Alma got her her very own camera!

Everyone enjoyed holding Katy all day, she got passed around quite a bit :)

Ricky and I even got to hold her once in a while:

After gift opening we played a game of Sorry (one of the gifts) and then I took the girls home for naps and everyone else went ice skating again.  Dominic had gotten new ice skates for Christmas and just had to try them out.
We went back around 5:00pm and ate dinner together and played some more games and just talked and hung out.  It was such a fun day together.  Even Ricky had fun ;)

Joanna really likes Great Grandma and sat with her the whole evening.

At the end of the night I realized I wasn't in any of the 50 pictures I had taken so I snapped one of my honey and I before we left.

So that was Christmas, such a fun day.

I have a cute video of Katy to share.  She likes to keep her hands clenched in tight little fists all the time, ever since she was born she's done that.  Ricky and I sometimes tease her that she must think someone will steal her thumbs so she has to hold on to them tightly.  So anyway, her hands get sweaty always being clenched like that so occasionally I will wipe them off with a baby wipe and for some reason Katy finds it funny.  So cute, sorry about the unfocused sections, I was trying to video and wipe her hands :)

And I just have to show these adorable pictures of Joanna holding a puppy.

such a doll baby.

Hope everyone had a wonderful and merry Christmas!