Christmas in July

I'm not going to lie.  I wrote this post at 8:44 p.m. on January 6th.  It's really not an embarrassingly long period of time since Christmas, but I still just kinda feel like I missed the Christmas blogging boat, and if I'm going to be late, I'd rather do it in style.  So I'm setting this to post on July 25th, when everyone has forgotten about Christmas and hasn't just scrolled through the 18 pictures posted by each of their friends (at least each of their mom friends) and isn't new-pajama'd out.  Enjoy a little Christmas in July!  (Or maybe a lot... buckle up.)

Kirk's Christmas came a little early with the addition of a whole TV wall in the basement, and his Bills winning the game on Christmas Eve.

Both Kirk's dad and his sister Marie got handmade gifts this year.  Note to self: more personal gifts next year.

(Will hold wallet sized pictures of the nephews and niece)

I also got Christmas early with our gorgeous finished basement.  The tree found a new home there this year, and though I didn't get to see it much, it looked beautiful.

I must admit to going a bit ribbon-crazy this year, but wrapping is honestly one of my favorite things about Christmas, and all the after-Christmas deals I'd gotten on ribbon meant I could use over 180' of ribbon (and I did), and not feel at all guilty (and I didn't).

And all that was just leading up to the good stuff.  We had our first Christmas Eve ever with Kirk's parents, and it was great to have them all to ourselves.  See, isn't the new pajama thing less cliche' in July?

Dylan apparently had no interest...

in listening to Grandma read.

While Adam perfected his OCD skills, lining up the cars in order of appearance in the book.

The "Santa" pile wasn't very large this year, but the man in red managed to bring the perfect gift for each boy.

We'd stashed some old toys away in the closet with specific intent to replace batteries, wrap, and give for Christmas.  This puppy was exactly the type of thing we'd have spent money on... but didn't have to!

Alex got exactly what he'd asked for: a family of frogs.  99 cents at Walmart, folks, and it made his day.

Thankfully, the other boys' easy to fill desires made room in the budget for this year's big ticket item, Adam's iPod.  We'd considered getting him the originally-asked-for DSi, but opted instead for the iPod.  It has been a great decision thus far.  We love having the flexibility to reward him with a new App for a job well done, and I think it will be a device that can grow with him (for at least a few years).

Especially with our week spent in Arizona, the addition of Just Dance 3 and Dance Central 2 to our Kinect library turned out to be a gift that will keep on giving.

And I really don't know who should be most embarrassed by this video:



The boys rediscovered what is so awesome about having young aunts and uncles.



Alex made friends with the next generation: my cousin Lindsay's daughter Veronica.  He even told her he loves her.  Must be those West Virginia roots.

It's hard to be annoyed by the boys forming an early love of the piano.  Oh, wait.  It's actually pretty annoying.

We actually golfed twice while in Arizona.  I must do this more!

A couple of old guys working on their tans.

We went to a local park to play some volleyball and ultimate frisbee.  Thanks to the stomach flu we'd managed to bring to Arizona, however, we ended up having to call the game when Jack threw up on the field.

A day at Golfland proved to be all sorts of fun.  Jack got kicked off the Go Karts, and Dylan got to mini-golf for the first time.  Most of us enjoyed the laser tag, but the excitement combined with wearing the heavy vest gave Alex an asthma attack.

I love it when they line up!

Traditional duck feeding at Kiwanis Park - a highlight of Dylan's trip.  We were fortunate that a family shared their bread with us.  We definitely didn't bring enough.

The mom-mandated camel picture.  I truly think I'll cry if they ever remove this camel.  I can't believe it's been a full three years since our last camel pic.

Merry Christmas - 6 months early or 6 months late!