Christmas 2009

What a wonderful holiday we've had!

About ten days before Christmas, Evan decided we would travel to Fayetteville. He claimed to have heard Home for the Holidays too often on the radio and felt little homesick. I was super excited to see our friends and family, but the planner in me was a little nervous about his announcement! Not to mention that the DAY he worked it all out with his boss was the SAME day we received the box of Christmas presents from Evan's parents. Nice. Sometimes he just catches me off guard with this stuff.

Sooooo....Evan decided he would surprise his mom. I liked the idea. There are very few true surprises in life, and I thought this one would be fun and memorable. I also decided that I would stay out of it, just in case his mom flipped out a little. That way, I couldn't be responsible. :) No, really, I knew Sheila would be so excited to see Kendall, she wouldn't care if the sheets on the guest bed were clean OR that she wasted $30 mailing our gifts. (We suggested to give them the money, but they refused!) :)

Evan DID tell his dad, although he really wanted to find a fur, dog-ear hat and show up like Cousin Eddie from Christmas Vacation. (If only we had the RV, right?!?!?) We left after Evan got off work on Tuesday, drove to the other side of St. Louis to get some rest, then drove the rest of the way on Wednesday. We got to Fayetteville with enough time to visit with some of our friends before Sheila came home from work.

Barry told Sheila that he had another gift coming for her, and he hoped it would be at their house before Christmas. When we saw Sheila pull into the driveway, Evan, Kendall, and I hid in the bathroom until we heard Sheila come in the kitchen, then sent Kendall out to see her first. Sheila was certainly surprised!

Our visit was short, but great. Evan spent some much-needed quality time with his family, and Kendall was the center of attention for a few days! And to top it all off, Fayetteville received a few inches of snow, so we had a white Christmas!

It seemed as though the amount of gifts we opened on Christmas morning was perfect. It wasn't overwhelming, and we were able to enjoy watching each other open gifts. (Well, I enjoyed it anyway. I like seeing what other people get as much as I like opening my own!) Kendall was really excited and liked passing out the presents. Each time I handed one to her (for herself, or to pass to someone else) she would say, "Oh my goodness!"




Another really cute thing Kendall did on Christmas morning was change into her new pajamas. We gave her a pair to open Christmas Eve, and on Christmas morning, she opened another pair from Barry and Sheila. When Kendall pulled the pajamas out of the package, she immediately started stripping down to put on her newest pjs.

My dad and my nephews were waiting on us when we got back to Louisville. (See the post underneath this one. We should have arrived at the same time!) Their visit was planned before Evan's wild-hair trip to Fayetteville, and I certainly didn't want my dad to cancel, so we were sure to be back on Sunday.

We had so much fun! Coby, my oldest nephew is pretty quiet and go-with-the-flow, but I think he comes by it honestly since his brother is a live wire! Jackson is HILARIOUS! Before the boys left their house, my sister and brother-in-law asked them who they would miss most, momma or daddy. Jackson's reply? "The dog." I asked Jackson if he wanted to just come live with me. He said yes. Kara, can I have him?!?!? :)

We spent Tuesday morning at the Louisville Slugger Museum. We learned how different bats are made, watched an inspirational video (I didn't, but all the boys did!) and looked at all the baseball memorabilia. Coby hit some balls in a batting cage, while Jackson and Kendall hit a few balls from a tee. Kendall also enjoyed seeing the Charlie Brown display! The rest of the time we just lounged around and played games. Coby and Daddy ventured out to Bass Pro last night, but I opted to stay home with Kendall and Jackson. Trust me, I'm not sad about that one. :)

Jackson and Coby LOVE LOVE LOVE Kendall, and Kendall's feelings are mutual. They had so much fun chasing each other around and I couldn't get enough of the infectious laughter in our home! At one point last night, I heard Kendall saying, "Take me back downstairs and put me in!" I couldn't figure out what she was talking about, until I went downstairs and found Kendall in her exer-saucer!

Coby and Jackson gave Kendall a baby doll stroller for Christmas. It's a hit. Kendall is totally into her baby dolls right now. Often, we hear her singing to them and changing their diapers. I love watching her pretend play!

Skyping with Mimi and Gran. I love this picture of all three in the same chair!

And now, we are resting and recouping.