This Christmas we were very blessed to have all of Dustin's brothers and sister and their spouses and families come out for a WEEK to celebrate Christmas! We jam-packed many activities into the time they were here, so I'll try my best to recap below...
Dustin's brother, Brandon, got here on the 21st, which was also our nieces', Katie and Alyssa, 12th birthday. We were so happy to share such a big birthday milestone with them! I took the girls out with all the other ladies in our families to a makeup counter to introduce them to makeup and get them some basics. It was so much fun, and the girls had great instincts about colors that looked good on them and how much to apply. Dustin and I continue to be impressed with how mature the girls are and are proud of all the great decisions they're making in their lives.
As always, Maga had many crafts ready for the grandkids. This year, crafts included ornament-making and decorating, gingerbread house building, and necklace pendant making.
We capitalized on having all the family together and took a complete Tillman family picture. It turns out we're so large that photo studios won't take us, so we do it old-school with Dustin's tripod in the park. They turned out great!
Christmas Eve the adults were treated to going to see Cirque du Soleil in San Francisco. We've never been to a performance before, and this didn't disappoint. I must admit that I was a nervous wreck most of the time, worried someone would fall or snap their neck or critically injure themselves in some weird way. The performers were fantastic though. That night, we went to Dustin's Aunt Joan and Uncle David's for an evening get-together, and, of course, another group picture of the extended family.
Christmas morning we spent at our house. The kids woke up at normal time (don't know for how many more years we can enjoy that), and got right into opening presents. Lyla was SUPER excited about Santa coming and dropping off gifts and she was on cloud nine all morning, saying "This is the best Christmas ever!" over and over again.
After all the presents were opening, breakfast eaten, and Hank fully napped, we headed over for MORE presents with all of the Tillman clan.
One of the kids' and adults' Christmas presents were passes to the Star Wars exhibit at the San Jose Tech Museum for the next day, along with matching "Trust me, I'm a Jedi" shirts. The kids had a blast, and the shirts were a huge hit as well. We even got Hank to sit through a 45 minute IMAX movie - a Christmas miracle!
Any time family comes from out of town, beach trips are always highly suggested by them. :) We hit up a beach in Santa Cruz that week. It was a little chilly, but that doesn't seem to stop the kids from having fun. Hank wanted to keep getting in the water, but was also simultaneously frustrated that he was so stinking cold. Poor guy was pretty confused about what he wanted. Lyla was feeling pretty sassy about her swimsuit and declared she felt like a "beach princess" (corresponding pose below).
Even though the visit was a weeklong, it always feels too short when it's time for everyone to go. Lyla was pretty sad (although Dustin might have been more sad to see everyone go than she was!), but she kept saying "I know I'll see them again soon". I guess we'd better get on top of planning our next get together.
1 comment:
Awesome week! Too bad our families didn't coincide better so we could all say hello at church! Also too bad that the Bay Area isn't cheaper so everyone could live here. Woof.
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