Christmas Memories

I feel like my last post was a little negative. There were lots of great things about Christmas, although I was not about the drive time. Todd's brother and family from Texas did have a longer trip than us and encountered bad weather as well, so can't complain too much. Texas is a longer way from Iowa than Indiana!!

Anyway, we did have a lot of fun! Some highlights include:

• Getting to see Todd's brother and family from Texas. It had been way too long since we last saw them.
• Getting to play with the nieces and nephews, which is always a blast. Everyone got lots of cool toys for Christmas. Let's just say the kids are well on their way to having the entire Star Wars Empire in legos.
• Sledding in the tons of snow up North! Well, I didn't sled, but did get some good pictures.
• Eating lots of good food. This year the family was so big we graduated to having a kid's table.
• Getting to see my brother's house for the first time and meeting Wrigley, their new puppy. Murphy and Wrigley had a great time playing together.
• Watching to dogs run around and under my brother's massive Christmas tree. This thing was totally Clark W! It was at least 12-ft tall and probably as big around.
• Getting my KitchenAid Stand Mixer! I finally got one (thanks Mom and Dad!) and have already used it several times.

There is so much more I am missing, but we did have a good time. Below are a few shots from the festivities.

Daniel and Lizzie. Two cuties we wish we could see more often. Shockingly, I think they are both fully dressed for this picture. Daniel's preferred outfit is mesh basketball shorts, no socks, shirt, or underwear. :)

Max, the master snowboarder! Todd tried using his board, but it doesn't work so well for a full grown adult to use a kid's board. I won't post the pictures of that! (In his defense, Todd is a great snowboarder given the right gear.) :)

My brother's Christmas tree. This this is real and HUGE!! Just look how big it is compared to the people, furniture, and fireplace. They have an awesome great room to hold this thing, too. Please ignore the bedhead when viewing this photo. :)