1 Family x 12 (December)

 

Merry Christmas from our house to yours!  I hope it's magical and filled with as much love and happiness we've surrounded ourselves with.

Christmas

 

It all goes so fast....too fast!  We work and prepare and sneak around making things special...all for this very special day filled with love and surprises and magic.  And, in the end, we can't wait to do it again next year.  That's exactly how I'm feeling as I sit here with the house mostly put back together and the majority of the toys and gifts tucked away in their new homes.  It's all so special and magical and I feel wrapped it up in love when I look back the photos from these days.  

I love nothing more than having our entire family surrounding us and making things special for the girls and this year we got just that.

The gift of the year was the go kart.  But for me, it was seeing everyone laughing and having fun.  We made our traditional Christmas breakfast full of all of Ellyn's recipes.  We added grinch mimoas for the kids - they were a hit!  

While the kids loved the go kart the best, I think one of my favorite parts of the day was the games I'd set up for us this year.  I'd been saving up ideas for a few months and collecting prizes and game supplies for weeks.  It took hours to put together, but seeing everyone enjoy them and making memories of us all laughing and competing made it all worth it.

We used one of the games to kick off a geocache hunt in our back yard that led to the keys for the big Christmas present...and, to add to the fun, Jamie and Zach got a matcher for Stella and Lucy.  They need some work, and some love, and some modifications to make them easier for the kids to drive (especially for Hazel) but it was the hit we'd hoped for!  Ryan is maybe even more excited than the kids though.  LOL! A gift for the whole family.

I always feel a little sad when it's all over and packed up until next year, but ahead is a time of rest, relaxation and hibernation.  We have another few days of holiday festivities ahead with New Years at the lake and then New Years Day with the Peso family.  January and February promise to be busy and filled with fun but for today, I rest.  Sitting in this strange in between time, between Christmas and New Years...between endings and beginnings.  

McGrath Christmas

 

You know I love a big family photo!  It's so easy to have a group of people together and feel like it's too much work to pull everyone away from their conversations to assemble a group photo...but you know what?  I never regret having them once we've done it.  What's even better!?  This one wasn't even organized by me.  

This photo makes me laugh, but it was too perfect not to include.  Silly faces and all. 

Sweet cousins!  These big kid cousins are always so kind and welcoming to our little ones!  They seem light years apart at this age, but in truth, there is only 2 grades between Abby and Will (the next oldest).  It's really nice to see them all gathered around playing bingo together...the best start to Christmas Eve!

Ritterbusch Christmas

 

We smashed so many holiday celebrations into such a short period of time - there are some of the best days of the entire year and I'm so thankful we get to spend them with our families.  We started Christmas break off with a bang!  I picked the kids up from school and we left straight away to Freeport for my parent's traditional Christmas Eve party.  

It's been a few years since we've had one (thanks Covid...) but this year we brought it back and it filled my heart with joy and love.  I love seeing all the old friends from Freeport.  I should really call them family, they are the adults and friends I grew up with my entire life.  

We even got a special guest this year!  Uncle Joe came down to spend the weekend with us.  It was so great to have him there and for the kids to get to know him better.   We opened presents, at pigs in a blanket and dumplings, drank fancy cocktails and laughed until our bellies hurt.  We watched football, decorated a tree for the outdoor cabin and generally enjoyed the weekend.

The gift of the year was the neon name signs Mom and Dad got for the big girls - Abby told me it was her third favorite gift of the season - LOL!  

One of my personal favorite parts of the weekend was when Santa surprised us all by visiting and fully decorating the cabin in the woods.  He had the whole thing decked out in lights and even brought stockings for everyone!  It was such a fun, cute way to end the evening.  I hope he does that every year!