Three Christmases and a Happy New Year

Curly was very excited this year that we were going to have t-h-r-e-e Christmases! Due to schedules and timing and trying to see everyone as much as possible in just two short weeks - we traveled from Utah to Idaho twice and celebrated Christmas gift giving three different times (Idaho, Utah, Arizona) - phew!

But let me back up and start by giving credit where much is due - Thanks to my wonderful Fisher and my sister K-Rae I was able to spend an extra week with family. Fisher encouraged K-Rae and I in a plan to surprise my mom on her Birthday. The plan came together perfectly when, at the last minute, my Boston-dwelling brother decided to come home for a few days before Christmas.

K-Rae flew to Phoenix after finishing her first semester at GWU. We spent an afternoon at the zoo, then she, Curly, Lou and I left before the crack of dawn to drive the long road to Utah. Fisher stayed behind to work another week before flying up to join the party. K-Rae didn't know what she was getting in to, but didn't break a sweat when Curly vomited no less than seven times on our trip.
Those beautiful Utah mountain were a welcome sight! Our excitement grew as we came closer to Salt Lake where mom (clueless to our proximity) and the rest of our siblings were gathering at Grandma's home. I am not exaggerating when I say that I had not felt so excited since.... well I honestly can't remember the last time I was that excited. K-Rae and I were attempting relaxation exercises to keep ourselves (somewhat) calm.
Oh the look on my mom's face when she opened to door and saw two daughters and two grand daughters standing there! What a wonderful moment!

All of my siblings were together to celebrate Mom's birthday with performances and singing (a family tradition). We enjoyed a wonderful evening together.

The following morning, Curly and Lou couldn't wait to play in the snow - it was too crunchy to do very much, so we just went for a walk. We were back in our old stomping grounds and it really seemed as if we had never left.
That evening we had a Woodbury clan get together with plenty of food, chatter, games, and laughter. Only Fisher, my cousin and her husband, and two great-grandchildren are missing from this picture.

Then came trip to Idaho #1 - More birthday celebrating, game playing, and time with my brother before he returned to Boston.
Sushi Dinner 0 YUM!

We returned to Utah to pick up Fisher from the airport and send Nathan home to the East :(

Christmas Eve and Day were spent with the Lakes. My mother-in-law is German and so we eat delicious German Rouladen, Rotkohl, and not so delicious, but traditional dumplings for Christmas Eve dinner. And of course, no Christmas eve is complete without a rendering of the Nativity - this year cute finger puppets acted out the scene.
Santa came through for Curly this year! Against my better judgment, she received just what she asked for - - - Makeup! Lou also received just what she asked for - which was peanuts - but Santa was smart and also supplied some "chap stick" knowing that her mind would soon change when she saw Curly's enthusiasm.
Curly's cousins were equally excited about her gift and this is how she re-appeared after running off to play "makeover" with her cousins... at least the make up is almost gone now :)

A delicious Christmas morning breakfast!

The fruits of Christmas #1

Cousins in their Christmas PJs

Lake family tradition requires a family bowling trip the Saturday after Christmas - the evil stomach flu prevented me from attending, but it looks like it was lots of fun and the skill-lacking scores reflected it!
One negative note to our euphoric Christmas is Lou's sudden decision to stop being a "big girl" and in spite of many attempts to persuade her otherwise, she required diapers the whole trip. Hopefully returning home will remind her of the virtues of being diaper-less and dry.

Trip to Idaho #2 = Christmas #2
My sister gave us a "Baseball Team in a box" complete with a jersey for each family member.

Besides spending time with my family, we were able to see my BF Ash and her sweet new little baby. Curly adored her (we all did). We also visited Great Grandpa Lake. As always he came through with a well stocked cookie jar and lots of great stories.
There were no cousins at Grandma C's this year, so Curly improvised by making her own friends :) Lou decided to create her own excitement by dumping a large bottle of fish food into Grandma's aquarium :(
When we returned back to Utah, the snow finally came and we had a blast sledding at the park and playing in Oma's yard.


Our New Year's celebration was hopping! We set an early clock for the children to count down and then played games after they were in bed.
My bro-in-law wanted a new look for the new year! He looked like Alfalfa right before his wife and I gave him a trim which ended up looking a bit like Spock - woops!
Fisher really enjoyed it (there is a picture just like this of me, but since I write to blog, I don't have to post it :)

And as always, Christmas can not last forever (though it seemed a bit longer this year) and we had to head home to Celebrate Christmas #3 and return to normal life. The drive dragged on longer than anticipated and we were all feeling like this by the time we made it home. It's exhausting to have so much holiday, but oh how we loved it! Only 355 days until next Christmas!