Christmas Eve/Morning

Since we head out of town for Christmas break, Santa makes an early stop to the Weldon house. This year we worked it out with the big man to come to our house the evening of the 18th. So, the boys got in their pajamas and set out treats for Santa including a letter. 

Daniel also had the idea to have an activity for Santa to do. He took apart his Saturn V model he had received for his birthday and wrote up some plans on how Santa should put it together. He came up with this idea all on his own. He was pretty excited.

Of course Santa put it together. Then he added fire and hung it from the light. Daniel was pretty excited when he came down the next morning. That was the first thing he noticed. 

Even before his stocking and toys.

Patrick got a kitchen to play in...

...and Josh got some more sport-themed stuff.

Even Mom and Dad got their stockings filled. I guess everyone was pretty good this year.

After stockings, we opened the presents from each other and the other Colorado Weldons. Patrick was so excited he gave his present a hug even before he opened it.

He was pretty excited when he opened it, too.

The boys were very excited about all the stuff they received. 

Merry Christmas from the Weldons!

Holiday Parties at school

The big boys both had Holiday parties at school on their last day before break. A friend of mine offered to watch Patrick so I was there by myself (it was weird). They were actually staggered in times so I could attend all of both parties. It worked out well.

Daniel's was first. The parent volunteers had come up with some really fun games. This first one the kids had to through "snowballs" through the holes in Olaf. 

How cute are those posters?

Then they had the kids decorate snowflakes with beads. 

Daniel ended up turning his more into a spider but he was pretty proud.

Of course there were yummy snacks, and then it was onto Josh's party. 

Because I didn't have any little ones, I got volunteered to help out with one of the crafts in Josh's room so I don't have many photos of him. I was helping the kids put a handprint on an ornament to take home. I got to paint the kids hands. It was fun to see all their reaction to that. 

They also decorated cards and had a few Holiday word searches to occupy the time. And of course, snacks. 

They both wanted to stay until the end of the day (recess of course) so I left kidless for a few hours then headed back to pick them up. 

Now we have two weeks of no school. Whatever are we going to do?

Rice Krispie Treat Train

For our annual Rice Krispie Treat train, the boys wanted to make it all by themselves. They measured everything, 

and mixed them up. 

They even put them in the molds on their own. Then they started decorating. 

Patrick was really concentrating. It was pretty cute.

Josh was very meticulous.

Daniel just tried to put as much on as he could.

This is how they turned out.

 Choo choo!

Christmas Decorating

Joe hosted some co-workers for a holiday party so we spent the day cleaning and decorating the house. The boys helped put up their ornaments. 

Every year, we take the boys to Hallmark and let them pick out a new ornament. This year we came home with one from Nightmare Before Christmas (Patrick's current favorite movie), a car (Daniel's, of course), and Peyton Manning (only because they didn't have Demaryius Thomas). 

The boys love helping put up decorations. They did a pretty good job this year. I didn't move a single one.

We also decorated the rest of the house.

After seeing the big tree with it's own star, Daniel felt the other trees needed starts so he made some. 

I think it's going to be a great holiday season.

WVU vs ISU Football Game

Another fun even this weekend was the Iowa State versus West Virginia football game. We left the boys in McGregor with Grandma and Grandpa and headed down to meet our friends in Ames. We got in Friday night for dinner and went to a restaurant, where we ran into Iowa State Basketball coach Fred Hoiberg. I didn't get a picture because I'm shy, but trust me, he was there.

It was nice to enjoy a dinner out with friends minus the kids. 

The next morning, we headed out early to get in some tailgating. It turned out to be a really nice day. Not too cold. We enjoyed hot chocolate, breakfast pizza, and of course, beer. 

Before the game, we enjoyed a victory doughnut. Yummy!

The doughnuts didn't work. We ended up losing. But it's always nice to see a game in person, especially with great friends. 

Thanks for hosting us Rob and Laura! Next season will be much better, right? Can't go anywhere but up from the bottom. :-)

Thanksgiving

This year was a Strutt Thanksgiving, so after school on Tuesday we hopped in the car, picked Dad up from work, and got on the road to Iowa. We made it as far as Lincoln, NE where we stopped at a hotel for the night. The boys thought that was fun. They love sleeping in hotels. We got a breakfast at the hotel, then got back on the road. This time we didn't stop until we got to McGregor. We spent the evening at my grandparents house with some aunts, uncles, and cousins (and their kids). It was a wild bunch. Then we moved into my parent's apartment for the night. In the morning, the boys had their traditional breakfast in front of the window. They love looking outside at the town while they eat, I guess.

Then we dressed them up in their Thanksgiving best. 

Aren't they cute?

We were the only ones from my immediate family here so they got in some quality Grandma and Grandpa time. 

Then we headed over to my grandparent's for a full day of eating. 

A few of my cousins were there with their kids so the boys had a lot of second cousins to play with. 

There were lots of card games going on. 

My mom had also bought some activities for the kids. One of which was a tablecloth they could color on with crayons. That kept the kids busy for a while. 

She also had the older kids help her make place cards for everyone that would be at Thanksgiving. 

It was a full house for the meal. We had 29 people there and that is less than half of the family!

After lunch, the kids watched movies in Grandma and Grandpa's room (like I used to when I was growing up). 

They also put Joe to work building origami (Josh got a book as a present from my other grandparents). 

I guess it was tiring work, so he laid down behind the couch for a nap. Hah!

Here are Grandma and Grandpa-Great with all the great-grandkids that were there. This family is getting big. 

There were plenty of things to keep Patrick busy as well. He spent a good amount of time walking around taking pictures with my camera. 

And my cousin, Paul, brought his dog. Patrick had a good time following her around.

Friday morning we met my other grandparents for breakfast. Since we are not making it up for Christmas, they brought the boys' presents to breakfast so they got to open them early. Patrick got a puzzle (which he built into a tower), Daniel got a cars book and drawing board, and Josh got the origami book. They all loved them. 

Patrick and Daniel ordered pancakes with whipped cream and this is how they came out. Cute!

It was nice to see so much family over the weekend. I'm glad we are still able to make this happen. 

Happy Thanksgiving!