Skip to main content

Christmas in Colorado!

Image
By
We had a wonderful Christmas in Colorado this year!  Both kids traveled fairly well...Ava talked non-stop both ways, and G slept on the outbound flight (I sat next to him) but he was a little restless on the return flight home (Scott sat next to him.)  I'm just really glad the flight is just under two hours; I'm used to traveling alone where I can catch a nap while in-flight, but not with these two kiddos!  Our outbound flight was a little delayed, but G entertained the gate area with his cute shenanigans (a random man picked him up and sat him on his lap - made me a bit nervous, but Scott was right next to him the whole time) and Ava made a new friend who she could play "Monster High" dolls with.  Couldn't have asked for a better situation in a delay!  One woman actually made a comment to Scott and me about how wonderful it is to see such loving parents with their children.  I'm going to tuck that comment away, and pull it out whenever I'm feeling a bit frustrated with either of them!

It was great to see my parents, eat lots of REALLY good food, bask in the Colorado sunshine/blizzard (yep, it was definitely a white Christmas in Colorado,) and even get a surprise visit from Santa at the house.  My parents' close friends came over for dinner on Friday night, and during the course of conversation, Scott and I discovered a new place we need to check out in Wisconsin - a smokehouse!  Can't wait to head over there with a cooler and stock up on some yummy meats and cheeses!

This year was the 1st year that G had a clue as to what was happening during the holiday (last year he was less than 2 months old at Christmas, and was only aware of sleeping and eating) so it was fun seeing how he reacted to the gift opening, and the general chaos that surrounds the holidays.

And my own personal favorite part?  I actually took a break from work.  I've been working so many hours that I'm almost at the point of burnout, so taking several days off, and only working maybe 3 hours over the course of 6 days was much needed.  I'll be back at work tomorrow, but with a new goal...less time at work, and more time with my family and friends.  As much as I like my job, I needed to remember that I work to live...I don't live to work!

Ok, lots of pictures to share - get ready!

My sweet, sleepy travelin' G


Scott, Ava and the "man who didn't say a word"...I'm really impressed that Ava didn't try to talk his ear off. (But, she did on the return flight when a younger woman sat next to us - poor lady!)


The frozen tundra of Colorado...


Decorating Christmas cookies with Grandma Karen



Hangin' out!


Ava found a little nook in the office and spent a lot of time on her tablet...


I promise he wasn't as uncomfortable as he looks - and check out that belly!!


Grandma Karen, Scott and G


I don't often post food pics, but these smoked salmon apps were delish!


"Ho, ho, ho!"  Look who dropped by to check in on Ava (and wisely told her that she would need to wait until she's older to get a big trampoline!)


G's 3rd Santa visit in two weeks - amazing!


We had a stowaway - George!  Glad you made the trip to CO!


Hahahaha!  (Stop with the pics, Mommy!)


Another food pic...our family's traditional (German) butterball soup...so yummy!


Snuggle time with Ava before watching "The Polar Express"


Time to open gifts...G was most intrigued with the ribbon and the boxes...



Usually Ava's the tricky one to get smiling for the camera



Totally freaking out when she realized she got an American Girl doll



Meet Annie (the flight attendant asked me if it was Samantha...I said no.  And then I marveled silently at the fact that a grown man knew enough about AG dolls to know the name of one of the dolls!)


The very first American Boy doll! :)


Leaving treats for Santa...


...who gobbled them up when he came to visit!


Such a great picture of the two boys...


G was admiring his lion sun catcher...


...until a flashy, noisy fire truck came along!


I'm bummed this pic is blurry...this is Ava's real smile.  Love that dimple!


It was a big Christmas for Ava...not only did she get Annie, but Santa also brought her a pink .22 rifle!  (Not sure how I feel about that, but I know that Scott will be with her during the learning and shooting process, and I know I can trust him 100%!)


What 1-year old doesn't want beer-flavored jelly bellies??  (J/K, they were for Scott and Grandpa Doug!)


A nice mimosa on Christmas morning...


Back to the tablet, in her own little world...where there are lots of colorful ponies, and a big pink Dreamhouse...



Colorado snowstorm!


Ahhh...sibling love!


So, that was Christmas, part 1.  We had part 2 yesterday, and will have part 3 this coming weekend...so, more pics to come!  Happy Holidays!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Goodbye Sweet Spanky

By
This is a post that I'm not very excited to write.  As you probably know, our oldest dog, Spanky, had struggled with health issues (ear infections, seizures) his whole life, and recently, his health had severely deteriorated.  He hadn't been eating, his ear infection was so severe his face was swollen, he had a hard time getting up the stairs, and he very rarely wanted to play.  Last week we got a few tail wags from him, and he ate a few bowls of food, but it was a 50-50 chance that he would actually keep the food down. On Thursday, we made the decision that if he wasn't any better by this weekend, we were going to put him down.  I know Scott didn't want to make that decision as Spanky was a very special dog to him - he truly was his little buddy, following him around everywhere, wanting to be wherever Scott was, and howling his sadness whenever Scott would leave him. Throughout Friday night, it became clear that Spanky wasn't going to have a miraculous recovery...
2 comments
Read more

Happily Ever After?

By
Lately, I've been adding to the Disney Princess movies in our collection.  Last week I bought Beauty and the Beast for Ava.  That was never a favorite movie of mine, but now that I've seen it several times in the last week, it's growing on me.  I figure this is a good chance for me to catch up on some of the stories that I missed out on! Watching all of these princess movies has me thinking about fairy tales...why is it that it's always the evil stepMOTHER?  Or the mom is dead, and no one has taken her place?  Very rarely is it the father who is evil, or dead.  This has actually come up as a topic in more than one conversation lately, and has me a bit intrigued.  Fairy tales are often not very happy - and usually someone dies at some point.  I was a giving an overview of Snow White to a friend of mine, and as I was going through the story, both of us were horrified at the message - mom dies, evil stepmother wants to murder her pretty stepdaugh...
3 comments
Read more

What's Black & White?

By
It's officially summer in Minnesota.  We've passed the 1-2 weeks where it's pleasant outside, and have moved into the hot and humid midwestern summer season.  This calls for some FUN in the SUN!  We were hoping that Ava would enjoy the water a little more this year than she did last year (I took her to several weeks of swimming lessons in a lap pool, where the temp of the water was just a wee bit too chilly.  It didn't go well for either of us.)  Plus, she has a new swimming suit I was anxious to have her try out, so at the very least, I knew she would look cute. :) So, Daddy decided to set up the sprinkler for her one night after dinner.  This, too, did not go very well.  Perhaps it's because he sprung the sprinkler on her without warning, causing her to run to me, with fear in her eyes, and very wet hands...  After that, we never got her to come near the sprinkler (way to go, Daddy), and she decided to play with my potted flowers...with h...
1 comment
Read more