Christmas day

We awoke early so we could check - did Santa come?  SURE DID!  Lucas was excited to check the reindeer bowls and see that they must have been hungry.  

No time was wasted jumping into the gift opening.   

Lucas picked out a ladybug pillow pet for his gift to Hannah.  I knew she would love it and the first thing she did after touching how soft it was, was to lay her head on it. 

Hannah gave Lucas a Cyclone football jersey.  He loved it!

After a quick breakfast and call to the doctor about Hannah, we were on our way to my grandparents in Davenport.  The weather was so weird - temperatures in the mid-40s, sunny and bone dry.  We had a dusting of snow around the first of December and nothing since, which made holiday travel super easy.  We made a quick and efficient stop to get Hannah's medication in Waterloo.  You would be surprised how many people were still shopping on Christmas morning at Walgreen's... gifts, wrapping paper, food.  The parking lot was packed!

It has been a long time since so many family members were in the same location, so we got some pictures. 

Grandpa will be 90 on his birthday on January 1, 2012; we celebrated a little early.

Then we headed to my parent's farm and Lucas and Nick were ready to help Papa do chores. Lucas got out of the van and went straight for the barn.

The collection of stockings keeps growing...

Aunt Karen and Hannah. 

Will.

One of Miss Hannah's gifts.

Nick and Caleb.

Lucas and Will.

We gave Will this Buzz Lightyear laser gun thingy.  He loved it.  So much, that we might be talking about this gift for many years.

Abby and Adele cheering for the 'Clones.

Lucas and Caleb.

My sister, Ann, and my brother-in-law, Koen, live in Leuven, Belgium.  They sent some really cool gifts and one special package for all of us to share.  Yum!

Belgian beer...

and chocolates.

After we attacked...

A great treat from them; we enjoyed it!

 

Another great Christmas for our family, too!!  We spent a couple of days with my parents and enjoyed the time together.  We pulled out a VHS of family movies from 30 years ago.  [In 1998 we had 8mm films made into a VHS and apparently now we need to make it into a DVD.]  It was really fun to see us as kids, everyone else so young - my parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and even my paternal grandparents who are now deceased... that was special.  It spurred a lot of laughter, smiles and good memories.