Christmas Break

Perfectly describes Christmas Break 2016

Christmas break went by in a flash, as it always does.  I had intentions of accomplishing so much while the kids napped each afternoon, and though I did complete a few small projects, nothing major was accomplished.

Like all years, we enjoyed all of the new Christmas toys.

Meet Matt, named after Matt the Barber in town.  Vince named him and he loves this new dog.  He's slept with Vince at night.  We had to pet him, tuck him in for a nap, and be quiet while he slept.  Here, Vince is giving Matt a checkup.  

Waitress Vera, serving hot coffee and sweet treats.

Vera received this cool plush craft from Karen, and she loves it.  For the first 3 days after completion, she carried it everywhere with her - all day long!  This owl gets as much love as Matt the dog.

It took her 2.5 hours of deep concentration to complete.  She was so excited about her finished product!

I caught Annie dancing along to her new alphabet fridge toy.  Everyone else was asleep and she was playing nicely on her own.  It was so cute to watch her dance and jabber along.

The new farm equipment and trucks have kept Vince really busy.  They've been harvesting hundreds of square feet of the basement.  Vince is fascinated with the auger on the combine and grain cart.  There's so much grain to unload!

Somewhere, perhaps in the bottom of the toy box, the kids found these teeth from Halloween.  After cleaning them, Adam helped Vince wear them and it was hilarious.  The big teeth were a challenge for his little mouth, but he roared excitedly as he chased Vera through the house, nonetheless.  

Vera had 2 little friends over for an afternoon.  The girls had fun playing together.  Vera was so excited to have them!

Anxiously waiting by the front door for her friends to arrive.

There was finally an opportunity for her to play some age-appropriate girl things without her brother sabotaging them.  Vince had a fun afternoon with Grammie while the girls painted and decorated their nails, played Barbies, made a craft, and ate a snack.

We spent New Years Eve with the Homan family watching the Buckeyes, playing in their awesome basement, and eating delicious food.  The kids were tired from playing so hard!  We left for home around 10, and I was certain everyone would fall asleep on the ride home.  How dare I hope for such a thing!  Annie was the only one who fell asleep.  Vera yacked most of the ride home, and Vince whined and cried due to being overly tired.  The last hours of 2016 were a true snapshot of our life.

Some of my favorite memories of this holiday break:

*Upon leaving my parents house on Christmas Night, we all exchanged hugs and Merry Christmases.  As we walked out the door, Vera looked over her shoulder and said to my parents, "And to all a good night!"  :)

*Vera made up her own verses and words to popular Christmas tunes.  "Balize Navida" for "Feliz Navidad"  and some other hilarious gibberish for songs words she doesn't know.  Surprisingly, she did know all 12 Days of Christmas in their correct order.  

*One day over break, Vince kept telling me something was wrong with his tooth.  We brushed his teeth, looked at his teeth, and assured him that everything was, indeed, ok with his teeth.  Yet, it kept surfacing.  Finally, after some questioning, Vince pointed outside and communicated that his tooth was outside.  Wait, what?!  We questioned him further.  He was so serious and adamant that, "Papaw's dog dot my too."  (Papaw's dog got my tooth!)  He said it over and over in such a serious and persistent way.  We laughed and laughed.  He did not share the humor.  Finally, we assured him that Papaw's dog, in fact, did not get his tooth and that all of his teeth were just fine.  He wasn't satisfied with that and insisted that Papaw's dog somehow got his tooth.  Later that evening, we called Papaw to find out what in the world is going on with his dog & Vince's teeth.  He had no answers for us.  haha  

Our break also had it's moments: fighting over toys, failure to nap, refusal to eat, and crying.  By Thursday of break, I was feeling somewhat defeated and ready to go back to work.  Maybe not so much ready to go back to work, but ready for a routine again.  I don't mean to sound ungrateful for the time off, because it really was great to enjoy my kids and a change of pace.

I am hopeful that this year will bring much happiness and health.  I know it will be busy.  As Vera grows older, more activities and opportunities come along with her.  Karen & Riley get married this year, which will bring a busy and fun-filled summer.  We have preliminary plans for a summer vacation and hopefully a few camping trips.  I also have hope that life will get a twinge easier.  One of these days Annie will learn to walk and Vince will potty train.  But, when one thing gets a little simpler, something new takes it's place.  I'm sure our year will be no exception.  C'est la vie!  Happy 2017!