Holiday Fun #2

Christmas fun continued with Lauren's birthday dinner at Shogun's, a hibachi-style Japanese restaurant in Tyler. We've been going there for La's birthday for probably a decade now, and she just turned 22. The boys had their 9-month check-up with the doctor that afternoon, and we left just after the appointment. Everyone was there except Ryan (he had to work, boo) and both sets of my grandparents made it this year. I am hoping that my parents took better pictures and can send those to me, since we only took a couple. The boys did GREAT, considering they'd been in the car a couple of hours and were in a new place. They were taking it all in, watching the fire and cooking and visiting different family members, although Gigi & Auntin Erin hogged them most of the dinner. :)

We did get one picture of Jack looking at Connor - he was sitting across from us with his Poppy and giggling at Connor. SO cute! He's really starting to take an interest in other kids and laughed at Connor a few times over the weekend. I wish we'd taken more, especially with their grandparents & great-grandparents. I am constantly lamenting my lack of pictures; surely I'll improve at this eventually.

The boys also met their Carroll grandparents for the first time that night. Ben later fell asleep while great-Grandma Barbara rocked him to sleep and Jack reached for great-Grandad Wayne! My Benny was so ready for bed that night.

Christmas Eve was low-key; my parents' church that we usually go to midnight service didn't have any Christmas Eve family (earlier) services, and since we couldn't exactly wake the babies to go to church, we skipped it this year. It was a nice relaxing day at the house, though, and the boys got lots of QT in with their grandparents. Jack discovered a new game with Gigi, as she made a toy drive around and crash  - he was losing it laughing! They also got to watch some cooking in the kitchen and had fun splashing in the bath before bedtime. We watched some Christmas movies (love) and had a small family dinner that night with mom & dad, and Lauren & Kris, since both Erin & Ryan were celebrating with Travis' & Katie's families, respectively. It was yummy lasagna, and yes, there was some leftover for Ryan. :)

Christmas morning was such fun! The boys had just finished opening their gifts from us when their cousins arrived, then we got to do the family Christmas with presents, etc. Connor was so much fun opening his gifts! I hope I have plenty of energy in a couple of years, because it will be Connor x2. My little Benny & Jackie had a lot of fun ripping paper and patting boxes. They were interested in a few of the toys, too, and would reach for them if they were taken away to make room for the next gift! They enjoyed spending time with their aunts & uncles, and Ben took an interest in fencing. In the collage below, note the look of wonderment on Ben's face - he had twisted to follow a gift Jonathan moved aside and wanted it back! You'll also see Ben fencing with Kris, Ben eating paper, and the boys banging on a new toy.

Oh, big news! Ben started crawling Christmas afternoon. Travis got it on camera, how cool is that? We'll share that when we get it. Jack followed him the next afternoon, but neither of them seem in a rush to repeat. Here's a picture of Ben when he started crawling - he looked so proud of himself!

The cousins:

We took a group family picture, and I'll add that as soon as we get a copy from Travis. It came and went too fast, but I'd have to say best Christmas ever!