Merry Christmas 17

 Merry Christmas!!  

It was a very merry Christmas this year.  Nana & PopPop came in for the holiday, which made it so much more fun.  On Christmas Eve afternoon we took the kids and went bowling in Loveland!  After everyone had so much fun we decided this should be an annual tradition - it was a blast!  The boys wore their new "Ugly" Christmas Sweaters (both dinosaur themed)... which kinda looked right with the funny shoes.  We got two lanes - one for kiddos and one for adults.  There were pitchers of beer, and "bowling alley wine" as it came to be called.  (The guy at the concessions window said it was a "good chilling" wine.  It was like a Welch's grape juice that had turned... and then been served cold.  But really... who goes to a bowling alley for wine?)  Abe and Kait really showed us all how it's supposed to be done.  Everyone was just there to have a great time, and we did that in spades!

That night we got home and Wes started complaining of an earache.  Complaining became crying and holding his ear.  With a little OTC help he was able to get to sleep around 1a.m. (which made playing Santa quite a challenge!)  Once he was asleep I was able to get some sleep, but...

The next day was the BIG day - CHRISTMAS!  The boys were under strict instructions to not wake mom and dad before 7a.m.  They followed instruction.  I heard them getting into their stockings around 6:45 (which is totally allowed).  At 7 sharp they shuffled into our room to tell us that "Santa was here!"  Josh and I got dressed, made our way downstairs and headed straight for the coffee mugs.  "Give mom and dad just a minute to wake up, and we'll open gifts."  Stockings are a great time killer until the coffee and tea are done!  All the gifts were a hit.  Molly carried her new bone from room to room all day.  Tweets was happy playing with her new jingle balls.  But the favorite was the Nintendo Switch for the boys, of course.

Around 1 the Weagraffs and Irwins came down.  We served seafood chowder, as is tradition, and had lots of appetizers and snacks to nosh on.  After more gifts it was time to watch the Steelers game.  This wasn't as much of a miracle as last year's nail biter game, but a win is a win and it was still awesome to watch.  HERE WE GO, STEELERS!  HERE WE GO!!

Christmas Day

There was a slow morning Tuesday with a bit of post-Christmas malaise, but we cured that with a little time at Get Air with Ainsley.  This is a new trampoline park in Longmont, and they boys love it!  Ains took to it immediately too.  Even Abe was bouncing around!

Get Air!

Finally, before the grandparents took off, we took the kids to see the movie Ferdinand.  It was super cute and all three just loved it.  We wanted to do something fun for their last night in town... so we did a game night at home!  PopPop and Abe grilled steaks and made some classic steakhouse side dishes, and we played "Smart Ass" around the table after dinner (trivia board game).  It was a fun, easy night with lots of laughter - a perfect ending to a great visit.