The holiday happenings

We had a bit of a rough start to our holiday preparation last week, as Mom, Dad and the babysitter all came down with the flu the kids had been passing around. Jeremiah spent Wednesday with a sub sitter. The sitter was also closed on Friday so John and Jeremiah spent the morning getting things ready to travel, while I went to work. After getting our bearings, we hit the road on Friday afternoon.

We arrived in Lena in time for a pizza dinner - one of Jeremiah's favorites. The holiday celebrations began on Saturday with my immediate family. Then, we headed over to Papa and Ma'ma's house to spend the night. We had intentions of going to church there but after a little snow and a whole bunch of wind, we were drifted in and church was canceled. With a little help from Papa's tractor, we loaded in trucks to go to the extended family celebration. Unfortunately, because of the weather, we gathered without Great Grandma this year. She wasn't comfortable coming out in the blowing snow. However, during our drive to and from Hanover, Jeremiah made very friendly with Aunt Sandra's mom, who is visiting from Costa Rica. He was enamored by her voice. It also helped that she fed him. When the driveway was drifting shut again, we decided it was best to spend another night and travel in the daylight.

Christmas eve - we got back to G&G Todd's a bit before lunch. We spent the afternoon helping with a few tasks, relaxing and getting cleaned up. We had a fabulous dinner and Jeremiah sat through the whole meal, culminating with his very own sugar cookie and peppermint ice cream. The whole Todd family went to church together and Great Grandma Z. was so proud to announce to her church that her whole family was in attendance together. Jeremiah danced his way through the service, finding great delight in "Angels We Have Heard on High" and "Silent Night". After arriving back at the house, we participated in what we hope to make one of our holiday traditions. We sat as a family to read the Christmas story from the Bible. Then it was time for Jeremiah to go to bed so Santa could come.

Christmas Day - Jeremiah woke up to find a Little People Garage under the tree. Santa must have known how much he has been practicing his vroom sound. He delighted in opening his presents and helping others with theirs. It was a bit chaotic but he did pretty good. Later that afternoon, he became a bit confused when Ma'Ma and Papa came to G&G Todd's house to hang out. We all partook of yummy snacks and they played games. It was really special that he could spend some time with all his grandparents on Christmas Day.

We headed back on Wednesday and we've been slowly busting in to his news toys, reading new books and spending time giggling, relaxing and snuggling.