Our start to the New Year left a lot to be desired.
This was Dexter, in the car at about 8:20am on January 1st, not 2 minutes after we left our house. Our car was filled to the gills with gifts for my Tennessee family and our clothes, etc. Everything we needed for a 4 day trip. Luckily it was only on the straps and not down in the seat. If you know me at all, you know this is just about the worst thing that could happen to me as a mom (aside from getting puked ON, which also happened recently). Anyway, we grabbed a bucket and decided to try again. I was a mess of nerves and on edge for the first couple of hours of the drive. By lunchtime, I'd calmed down but started to worry again that he'd get sick after eating. After eating, we let them play for 20 minutes or so to see how he was going to do.
We made it to Tennessee without further incident and everyone seemed to be feeling great. We picked up my mom and headed straight to Dollywood, another hour away. The forecast was showing temps of 54 so it sounded like the perfect time to show the boys the beautiful light displays there. 
Too bad it was getting dark by the time we showed up and the temperature had dropped 484,923 degrees. Okay, it was like 40 but we were all freezing. We ended up only staying for an hour or so before finding someplace in Pigeon Forge to eat and heading back to mom's.
The boys couldn't have been happier to leave Dollywood and get back to Grammy's because they knew present-palooza #3 was waiting for them.
Grammy with her littlest grandsons.
My sweet niece Penelope just days before her first birthday (today!)
Thursday we relaxed around the house most of the morning and then I spent a few hours with a dear old friend of mine. While visiting her, I began feeling a little sick. By the time we got back to my mom's I was ready to lay down and call it a day. The same stomach bug eventually bit me and I was feeling pretty miserable. I tossed and turned from the time I went to bed until about 3am when I finally decided to go sit in a chair in the living room. As soon as I nodded off there, I heard Theo yelling from the next room and I knew what had happened. I jumped up and ran in there and turned on the light, only to find him sitting up, crying. He had thrown up all over my mom's new comforter. NOOO. I think I started crying right then. I was in no condition to be standing up, let alone cleaning up yet another pile of puke. I yelled for Ryan and sat on the floor with 2 crying kids while Ryan cleaned up the bed.
Speed on through the next 12 nightmarish hours and miraculously, by Friday afternoon we were all feeling much better. My sister and her husband had planned to take the boys to Build-a-Bear as part of their Christmas gift so I agreed to meet somewhere for dinner and see how that went. Theo's energy had returned but his appetite was missing. A-okay. We proceeded to the mall so they could make their little pals.
When I explained to Theo what Build-a-Bear was, he seemed disappointed and said he didn't like bears. Funny that they had tons of options and that's exactly what he chose!
And he shall be called Honey Bear.
Dexter chose the mouse, who has been called everything including Squeakers, Squeaky, Mousy, Koogie, and Cookie.
Don't we look just alike? No? I know.
What about me and my niecy poo? No? Still nothing?
Thanks, Hamer family!
I'd never done or seen the Build-a-Bear process before but I thought it was super sweet. The boys really got into it and are still carrying their little animals around and sleeping with them.
We'd planned to celebrate Penelope's 1st birthday on Saturday but we decided to cut our trip short and leave Saturday morning instead of Saturday night due to impending bad weather at home. So she opened her gifts from us back at my mom's on Friday night.
And Saturday morning, we hit the road. But not before catching a quick glimpse of our star-athlete-in-the-making nephew in action.
Crossing the bridge back into Indiana.
We got home around 6pm Saturday and nestled in for the snowstorm.
Looking around our house now, I have to say I feel a little guilty. Our kids have so much STUFF. They love their toys and there aren't tons of things that they never play with. I've been pretty good about going through them routinely and donating or passing down to someone else. But I won't be buying a single toy until their birthdays (Theo's is in just over 2 months...how is it possible that my baby is almost FOUR!?).
So that concludes Christmas 2013! Here's to hoping that we got all the puking out of our systems for a long while. My stomach leaps out of fear every time the kids cough, hiccup, or gag at all. NO MORE PUKE.
Health, wealth, and happiness to you this year,
~C~
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