With one more Christmas to celebrate, we loaded up a rented van loaded with Gutts, bags, snacks and a DVD player and drove East to Shawano. We spent the evening with Grandpa Gutt and Ruth and the girls definitely didn’t disappoint in the entertainment category. They were little angels, especially after we got a nap into Lily. I was worried about the fun little breakables around the house, but both girls were very cautious and respectful to Grandpa and Grandma Gutt’s things. We had dinner catered in which was delicious. Lillian (shocking) wouldn’t eat, so I had to do my part and help clean her plate. Lily had her sights set on the raspberry dessert. We distracted both girls during dinner with Sesame Street clips on Loran’s tablet.
We gave all of the grandparents a photo book highlighting the girls in 2011. Needless to say, it was Ella’s favorite gift. She would hop from lap to lap with the book to show whomever would have her all of the photos of herself and Lillian.
The girls received princess books with skirts and wands. They were then set for the night…
This marked the end of our Christmas celebrations, Lillian took that kind of hard.
We stayed at a nearby hotel to lessen the burden on Grandpa and Grandma. Because Lillian isn’t a great sleeper and the girls are pretty busy, it was just easier to have a space where they could be their wacky selves. The girls really got a kick out of staying at a hotel with a room near Nana, Papa and Nathan. The next morning, we took them swimming. I will say the pool was “refreshing” – but the girls had a great time splashing around for a few minutes, finally when Lily was shivering uncontrollably, we decided to pull the parent card and get the out of the pool. We then sat on the stairs of the “hot pool” and let them sit on our legs to warm up a bit. Ella was talking and talking about swimming. Hopefully she’ll have the same happy thoughts when her swimming lessons start at the Y this month!
Once swimming was complete and everyone was showered up, we met the family at Perkins. We were joined by Papa Dan’s sister and family – Bonnie, Larry and their two boys. It was fun to visit with them as we haven’t seen them since Loran and my wedding – 8 1/2 years ago! The boys have grown considerably! :) Of course, so has the size of our little family!
After brunch, we were back in the van, heading West. We were on our way to Merrill to celebrate Loran’s cousin’s September wedding. David and Katie are located in Oregon and had a small wedding with close family, but the party was held December 30th in their hometown. We checked into our hotel beforehand where upon opening the door to our room, we were met with a blast of hot hot air. The heat had been left on high. We opened some windows, cranked the air conditioning and hoped for the best. Thankfully, it worked out and cooled off. We eventually turned the heat back on around 5 am! Nana, Papa and Nathan were across the hall, so the girls wandered over there for awhile. Loran and I took that time to run to Piggly Wiggly (best name ever) to buy some milk for Lil. It was like a date! Once everyone was refreshed, we were off to Marla and Mike’s house where the family was gathering before the festivities. Nathan took off with the cousins to the party to help set up and Ella was very worried that we’d lost Nathan. She was very excited to be reunited with him later at the party.
At the party, Loran showed the girls how to play skee-ball and the children had made up a game using the white pool ball on the pool table. They loved playing together. Ella was really excited to dance. While we were eating dinner, I told her we would dance once there was music. Well, as we were eating, the music started. Ella’s eyes got huge, her head snapped in my direction and she said, “MOM! Music, we can dance!!” So, I kept my word and out to the “dance floor” we went. Ella and I boogied down, but then she set her sights on a better dance partner. Daddy? No. Her prized dance partner was Nathan. She only wanted to dance with Uncle Nathan. As he said, it was like any other dancing he’s done, dragged on the dance floor by some girl! When Adele came on, I thought Ella might burst. Her absolute favorite artist.
It was a great night celebrating Katie and David and catching up with all of the cousins. The girls could just run around and mingle with family and there was little to worry about. Except, Lillian always keeps it interesting. I’d gone off with Ella to the restroom and Lily didn’t want to see me go, we snuck off, but Lily was quick to notice my absence. While in the bathroom helping Ella, I heard the bathroom stall door rattle and as I turned my head, I saw Lillian sliding under the door, slip and slide style. She popped up once in the stall and said “hi!” We laughed at her funny/somewhat disgusting move. I helped the girls (especially Lily) wash their hands as Nana and Aunt Beba rushed into the bathroom looking for Lil’ Lil. Such a little rascal.
As much as the girls wanted to stay, we decided to let Carter have his wish and be the last kid standing. Out we went, back to the hotel to get ready for bed. Both girls fell asleep easily after dancing the night away.
The next morning, we all reassembled at Marla and Mike’s house for brunch. There were children running around everywhere along with cousins, aunts and uncles. It was great! As I alluded before, I don’t have many cousins my age (just one), and to be married into a family that has many cousins my age is just a dream! There are lots of small children, which means built-in playmates. And having family in the same life stages as us is just wonderful. Peers! As fun as it was to grow up always getting to sit at the adult table, it’s a nice change to have some cousins my age.
It was fun to see everyone and celebrate Christmas and weddings, but the girls seemed pretty happy to get back to their own beds and be around their own stuff. We had lobster tails and champagne to celebrate New Year’s Eve. The girls had fish sticks and milk. Loran and I tried to stay up until midnight. That was a loss, so we made it to New York’s countdown and were fast asleep by midnight central time. Oh well, that’s how we roll now.
Lily Crocker wishes you a Happy New Year!
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