We headed out to St. Louis the day after Christmas. It probably would have been okay to wait an extra day, but we were anxious to get on the road to be able to maximize our time with my family - particularly a certain sister who has been in Africa for over a year and a half!
Nothing like starting your road trip with a flat tire. Praise the Lord our friends Jason and Betsy were literally 5 minutes behind us and able to pull over and stop and help us. Their car then neglected to start, and we were able to send our tow truck to help them. God orchestrated for sure - this all could have been waaaayyyyy worse!!
Spending time together. Doing very little. Sleeping, talking, playing, iPading, eating, reading...it's what families are all about!!
Uncle Jeff had all the boys gathered around for some good ole' youtube truck videos :)
Aunt Kari (pregnant with twins! And the reason she's stateside) with Gemma
Aunt Liza and Gemma (about the only time we saw her due to a nasty stomach bug that knocked her out for 48 hours of the 100 hours she was there - no joke :( )
Daddy and his boys
Presents!!! It was probably one of the most chaotic, yet fun, present openings I've been a part of :) I mean, you have 6 kids 4 1/2 and under...what do you expect? It was awesome and crazy and it will only get better from here! I love all the kiddos in our family and pray the cousins can really grow together and get to know each other well.
Liza and I had the same idea as far as matching pjs this year - and here are the first set of pictures. Unfortunately it never worked out to get all the cousins in the same pics due to sicknesses and the Ford clan sleeping at their own house, of course. Maybe next year :)
Sweet Asher
Eleanor turned 1 just after we were there, so Mike and Deanna had a little birthday celebration for her while we were all there. What fun to be able to celebrate my sweet niece and her first year of life!!
Monday morning began the dreaded stomach bug. Micah was hit harder than Reid, but it was a relaxed morning for both boys. They were quarantined in our bedroom watching shows with "spit-up" bowls by their side. Thankfully it wasn't used much.
The next morning was better and pj pic number two happened. This time Nana Kay joined in on the fun...Penguins!! :)
My parents had bought a groupon for all the kid to go and enjoy a bounce house. Sadly the darn stomach bug wrecked the plans for some, as the Florida Fords and my husband stayed back home, but the rest of us had a great time.
Micah's in the orange and gray, and hard to tell, but this was a huge challenge to climb and he persevered through it! I was super proud of him.
And just a few videos to capture the fun :)
Papa C and Nana Kay and all their grandchildren! (4.5, 3, 2.5, 2, 1, and 6 months)
Nana Kay found a fun Disney board game for the boys to play, and the board of choice was 101 Dalmatians!
Sibling/spouse date night to PF Changs! Unfortunately Jeff and Liza weren't able to join, as the stomach bug knocked the event off earlier in the week, and then they had to head back home before we could reschedule. What a nice gift my parents gave us all to watch our kids and give us gift cards to enjoy a fun night out.
Sisters!!!!! It's been too long.
Sisters and their husbands!
We headed back home the next day, and I had to document the moment in which all 3 kids were sleeping in the van. It was short lived, but we enjoyed the silence while we could :)
