X-Mas

Happy Holidays!  Whew, this is an overdue post and therefore it's a long one.  I'm warning you, there are a lot of pictures to scroll through.  Overkill? Probably.  Necessary? Absolutely.

We kicked of the Christmas celebrations with August's parents here in KC.  It was a lot of fun having them over to experience Christmas in the new house.  Alice got her first taste of Christmas gifts and Caleb?  Well he's a pro now.

August received a crepe machine!  Not only is it a great gift, but we get to store it in the kitchen!  I'm loving all the space that the new house has to offer.  No more storing kitchen items in the basement!

Our next stop over the Christmas holiday was Wyoming.  We decided to drive this year to save some money and I also think we are into self-torture.  Long gone are the days when August and I can just drive this trip straight through.  We definitely turned what used to be a 12 hour drive into a long 2 day trip.  But it was worth it!  We had a lot of fun stops along the way and the kids were so great in the car.  Honestly by the end of it it was the adults that were "all done".

Our first stop on the way to Wyoming was an amazing children's museum in Lincoln, NE.  Stop there if you are ever passing through.  It's great!

Then it was on to Casper for Christmas.  Here is Caleb posing with the plate of cookies for Santa.

Merry Christmas - your gift is a headlock.

The kids received some really fun gifts!  Caleb got his own chair and an easel.

Alice received a new doll bed with a mini quilt to match the quilt she received from Grandma Kate when she was born.  She loved it and wanted to take a quick nap.

The town of Casper.

We visited one of the museums in Casper that had a train exhibit and stagecoach ride.  Caleb loved it!

After are visit in Casper we traveled to Lander for Christmas round 3 at Bechtel Manor.  We got in tons of cousin time and Caleb and Sam had a blast.  Two peas in a pod!

And we can't forget the girls!  Alice and Anabel were two sweet little peas together.  They definitely have a long road of bonding ahead - much of it likely spent hiding from their rowdy brothers!

Since we've been home we've be having lots of tea parties!  Alice has quickly figured out how to pour tea and stir it.  She's a natural at being a hostess!

However, we're still working on our table manners.  This lady knows how to sling her spaghetti!

But she cleans up well....

And has even conquered her mylar balloon fear!