Margo had a rough night leading into Christmas day. She woke up around 2am and would not/could not go back to sleep. Lauren finally took her downstairs where she finally conked out on the floor at 5 am. Poor Lauren, recovering from her own fever and already sleep deprived from spending late nights chatting with Katie and me, likewise crashed on the couch.
The older kids knew they weren't supposed to get up or wake up any siblings or cousins before 7 am. They did a reasonably good job with that, but were still all in my room by 7am. We enjoy dragging out the getting ready process, just to see them squirm with excitement. We made them line up by age before heading down the stairs. I snuck down first to get Lauren and Margo. I scooped Margo up off the floor, and she nestled happily in my arms. We made our way back up to take cousin pictures, but Margo refused to let me put her down. When it was time to allow the kids to go down, Lauren came over to take Margo. Seeing arms reaching out for her, Margo pulled closer to me, then did a double take. She saw Lauren, then jerked her head up to look at me. All the time I'd been holding her, she thought I was her mom! Hahahahaha!
As you might imagine, sending the kids downstairs resulted in happy chaos. Each kid was allowed to open their stockings simultaneously. There were constant shrieks of excitement.
After stockings, we slowed things down and opened presents one at a time, from youngest to oldest. It didn't take as long as you might think. We paused for breakfast (french toast casserole yumminess), then went right back to opening. I think the long breaks between turns gave the kids a chance to play and enjoy the last present before getting a new one.
Graham insisted on buying Avery a Beanie Baby dolphin with his own money. He was more excited to give it to her than he was about getting his own gifts!
The kids were pretty pleased with their gifts. Bryce's favorite gift was a Sphero Mini.
It's provided hours of entertainment in the weeks since Christmas. He also got quite a bit of Lego items, including his first Lego Technic.
Graham's favorite gifts were his Transformers. Surprisingly, it was Mark who asked me to get the Transformers for him. "Really," I asked, "You want me to buy more toys?!" "Not toys," he responded, "Transformers. They're different." Graham was also excited about a new National Geographic animal books.
Aubree's gift list proves she's growing up; she got a shoe organizer for her closet, a new bedspread, and make-up.
Nellie got a matching bedspread, but she was more thrilled with new dolls.
Thane insists he can't decide on a favorite gift, because he loved them all. He got Heelys, Trash Pandas, and Snap Circuits.
We also used Christmas as an excuse to start prepping for our big road trip. Each kid got a hydration backpack, and I got packing supplies and behind-the-seat organizers for my van. Lauren got us a cool USA cork-board, and Aubree and I used the supplies to map out our trip. Blue pins are for visiting family, yellow pins for visiting friends, green pins for visiting National Parks, purple pins for places of interest where we're not staying the night, and red pins are for hotel stays.
The rest of the day was as relaxed as it can be with eleven kids and five adults in one home. We just loved having Katie and Lauren's family with us to celebrate Christmas!
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