Christmas 2015 and a bunch of other stuff

My blogosphere has been quiet lately - no new posts from anyone for a few days. When that happens, it sometimes motivates me to be the one to post something. Can someone psychoanalyze that?

Anyway, I have put off updating long enough. Christmas was quite an event, and the pictures/videos to be posted are overwhelming, but I'll do my best to not download every single shot of a sugar cookie or VA countryside or the family dog.  Here goes!

Christmas Sunday: The Sunday before Christmas was kind of our "first" Christmas. Danny's family was able to be there for a few days before heading to their other family for actual Christmas so we made a early holiday of it.

 It was beautiful, clear and cold.

 Aunt Andrea, baby Ari, and her tasty toes. Isn't she scrummy?

Later, the kids got to open a special gift from Grandma: hand-made dolls that matched each grand-child's eye and hair color. Needless to say, a big hit! (I don't know how many hours went into those, but if I had to guess, I'd say, many.)

 Afterwards, we took them for a walk to pay a Christmas visit to our neighbor and sainted bus driver all growing up.

Many crafts and cookies later, we said goodbye to the cousins and prepared for Christmas. (See Christmas Eve post)

Let me say one more time how much we all missed daddy/Dave. We had a lovely time nevertheless, how could we not, and I just kept the camera rolling throughout so I could send him regular updates.

I pared it down to 6 minutes for the blog though:

Oh, you know, just the culmination of months of waiting and planning and dreaming. Riley and Joseph already are looking forward to next Christmas. And I loved getting to spend time with our VA family, building memories and laughing at all the silly things. Reading through the basket of Christmas cards from family friends, making calls on Christmas day to family far and wide. I'm just so grateful for that time of year. I'm waxing Dickensian:

"There are many things from which I might have derived good by which I have not profited, I dare say," returned the nephew, "Christmas among the rest. But I am sure I have always thought of Christmas-time, when it has come round-apart from... the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that-as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys. And therefore, uncle, though it has never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket, I believe that it has done me good, and will do me good; and I say, God bless it!"

- Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol.  Speech by Scrooge's nephew, Fred.

 That is the passage I shared on Christmas Eve, when the missionaries asked each of us what Christmas means to us.

I suppose it is good that I put off writing this post - I am getting a second dose of the Christmas spirit right here.

Well, it was just wonderful. Thank you to all who made our Christmas so special. There were many of you and we just felt loved and humbled and grateful, all at the same time!

Alright, a few more things before we put this baby to bed:

Happy New Year!

A few photos Riley took on my phone New Year's Day. Frank is in there because, "I love him - he's berry nice and I want to take him with me." haha!

 A conversation Dave and I shared on week 25 gestation of baby#3

 Thanks a bunch for having us, family! I and the kids had a great time, so thanks for putting up with us. I know, I know - we are fabulous and you are very loving and adore us, but I am aware that we bring our own brand of crazy where ever we go (oh, which reminds me, here is this video I was telling Mom about. Enjoy - I'm sure you can relate :)

Speaking of that, here is a little audio recording of the bedtime routine that Grandpa helped out with a lot while we were there. I should have gotten a video so you could see them jumping around and being crazy, but the audio kind of cracks me up.

 And I think that about sums it up. Heidi, over and out.