Christmas travels

Last Christmas post and then we're embracing the new year! I've already rearranged and reorganized some spaces in the house. This motivation to start fresh is the only reason to love January;) That, and the chance of snow...

We started our travels in Port Hope with my family. Puzzles, knitting, games and lots of reading books made for a nice break from the normal routine. Unfortunately Deric got sick with something one day and we all experienced some wicked sinus issues thanks to this flip-flopping weather, but we still had a great time.

Once all the grandkids got in town, we broke out the graham crackers and candy and made gingerbread houses (or trains, castles and playgrounds..). Deric, Dad and I engineered the skeleton of Jake's train and then let him take over with candy decorating. Jake was very serious about placement of the candy; note that little tongue sticking out in concentration. And once he figured out the frosting was edible (and delicious), it got real.

After an incredible Christmas dinner (Dad's tenderloin makes that ten hour drive worth it), we opened stocking stuffers and played Minute to Win It games with the whole family. Celebrating Christmas with great-grandparents and everyone on down was pretty special.

After a few days in Michigan, we drove down to Deric's parents' house. J We spent one evening with all of Deric's aunts and uncles, cousins and their kids, then did another Christmas morning with the immediate family. Jake loved spending all day playing with his cousins, eating good food and even practicing his bowling skills one morning. After a week and a half spent traveling, we were all ready to get home but we still miss our families and were glad for the opportunity to squeeze both into one trip!