Midwest Vacation: February 2016

We were overdue for a trip to the Midwest to visit our larger and ever growing family!  To show our rookie parenting skills, Chris booked the trip for a week in February straddling Presidents weekend.  After calling me to tell me that he booked a trip to the Midwest, it occurred to both of us that the kids had a February vacation (known as 'ski week' in California, how funny) that did not coincide with the weeks we were supposed to be away.  Chris hung up with me and called the airlines. After some shifting we had all new flights and a vacation that coincided with  a week of no school for the boys!  Score!

We arrived in Michigan at the start of what was an incredible cold snap and it was very very chilly!  It was a shock for our California bodies but it was also fun to have some extreme weather to deal with.

On our first full day in Michigan, we headed over to the sledding hill in the park near the McLean's house.  The hill was perfect for the boys.  Unlike the hill in Tahoe where Chris and I had to be the brake for the boys while they loaded onto the sleds, this hill was flattish at the top and the boys were able to sit and start themselves.  We lasted maybe 40 minutes in the bitter cold and it was so fun!  Hot chocolate, painting, play dough and coloring filled the rest of our indoor time.  We also had a great visit with baby Isaac and the rest of the family for a wonderful family dinner that Granny put together.

On Valentines Day we played with the Clark Trio and Chris and I had a romantic date in Ann Arbor.  It was bitterly cold but we had fun roaming around the dark cold streets feeling footloss and fancy free!

Chris headed back to work after a great weekend of fun but the boys and I stayed to play with Granny and Papa for another day!

After another full day of play, we embarked on to our next next adventure.  The four of us traveled to Toledo and met up with my mom and grandfather. We met at the children's' museum in Toledo and had a great afternoon playing all together.  It is fun to see the different fun things that kids museums put together.  Also it is so fun any time both sides of the family collide!  After our fun, we changed cars (and I installed the carseat, boom!) and headed off to Solon.

Once in Solon we fell into the pattern of visiting with family, playing with Nana, Gramps and Grandma Great, playing with cousins, and playing in the snow.  One of the goals for the trip was to build a snowman. Crazily enough, it was so cold in Michigan that we were able to play in the snow but not able to build a snowman.  The first couple of days in Ohio were also cold, but then an incredible warming streak occurred.  Brady and Brody built a great snowman with their cousins just in the knick of time.  By the next morning, all of the glorious snow was gone and it was 60 degrees and sunny.  We went from snowboarding in Uncle Mike's driveway to bike ridding in Uncle Tim's.   What a perfect way to transition back to California weather.

The ten days around family was wonderful.  It always leaves us feeling so refreshed and a little sad that we do not get to see everyone more often. We are already looking forward to our next trip.

The 2015 Christmas Season

This Christmas was magical.  We did so many fun things that made it super memorable (it must have been memorable because I am writing this three months later and can still remember most everything!).  We started off the season with a tree cutting party with some friends.  The party included some tailgating, lots of kids to play with and a random Santa walking around giving out Halloween candy.  Brady was quick to ask "Mommy, why is that Santa handing out Halloween candy?  That is the wrong holiday".  My very logical child was not fooled and I could not help but giggle.

After tree cutting, we did a walk-through of some great christmas lights with 3D glasses this year.  It was a great techi version of one of our favorite activities.

After we got our tree home, we spent the next day decorating it.  The boys enjoying hanging all the ornaments, remembering their favorites, and fighting over them much like Rachel and I used to.  They did a great job hanging the ornaments all by themselves and I did not care one bit that our tree was completely lopsided.  Mostly I was just happy that Hank did not try to pluck off any ornaments with his teeth.

The boys and I decorated Christmas cookies and I let them go to town with the icing and sprinkles.  They loved it!  They are so darn independent and capable that these traditions are so much more fun now.

Christmas morning was also exciting.  The boys did not want to go to sleep and were so excited for Christmas day. I remember that feeling and was so glad to finally see it come through in the boys.  They rushed from their room the next morning and dove into the gifts.  They savored each item for about 1 minute and tore through the living room as fast as possible.  After everything was opened, they played for hours and enjoyed all of their toys.  We spent dinner with friends and it was the perfect end to a very nice Christmas.

I can't believe I almost forgot to include what is sure to be a McLean family story for years to come.  A few hours after all the presents were opened and everyone was focused on playing, Hank managed to get the kids toilet seat stuck around his neck.  He disappeared down the hall (apparently to drink the toilet water) and came back with a worried look in his eye, a whimper comping from his throat and a toilet seat as a necklace.  He came right over to me and basically asked for help in the clearest way he could.  Hank was worried and when I gave the seat a gentle tug and realized that it was not coming off, I was worried too!  Chris tried to work it off but Hank's head but his head is so gigantic that we soon decided it was best just to cut it off.  Out came the hacksaw and a few minutes later Hank was free.  I wish I could say this incident has deterred him from drinking toilet water, but Hank is a bit stubborn and toilet water is his thing.  No biggie, the boys are totally capable of using the regular seat and Hank's head is not quite that big (yet)!

Chris was off the rest of week and we spent the time hanging out together and just enjoying the Bay Area.  I alway long for the Christmas season and it goes so fast!  I don't want to wish time away, but I am already looking forward to next year.