When we got to the Briggs on Monday, everyone was there and it was just chaos! But good amazing to be together kind of chaos. Brinley and Ellie were excited to see her 4 boy cousins and reconnect with them. Poor Brinley was having a hard time with the cold weather. She kept complaining about her jacket not being puffy enough and her hands always being cold. She stayed inside most of the day and by dinner time, I realized she still had a low-grade fever that was still hanging around from a few days before. She spent the next day inside and spending lots of alone time in our bedroom away from everyone.
On Tuesday, we celebrated Ryan's birthday!! He is such an easy guy to please and just wanted to spend time together and go bowling. We ate lunch at Jason's Deli and went bowling afterwards. Brinley stayed back at Grandma and Grandpa's to rest while we went out. I missed that girl! But it was also kind of fun to have a little date just with Ellie too!
For dinner, we had delicious steaks, baked potatoes, and for dessert, Ryan's favorite cake his mom made from their childhood, Crazy Chocolate cake! It was my first time having it and it was absolutely delicious.
That night, we opened Uncle Bruce's (Ryan's uncle) gift to the kids. He got them each their very own giant stuffed rainbow trout fish! They were absolutely hilarious with the fish! I was laughing so hard because it was so random but also such a perfect gift for the kids.
stu and julie, all the way from NYC
Another fun addition, was finding out that my sis-in-law Chrissy is having her 5th boy! I can't imagine having all those boys, but she is the perfect mom for the job. She is so patient and loving and you can tell that those boys just adore her. We are about 7 weeks apart and both expecting boys! I hope these two babies become little pals as they grow up.
On Christmas Eve morning, the kids, with help from Uncle Ryan and Auntie Hayley, made sugar cookies! They were so funny. Some of the cookies were super thin and others were about an inch thick. They were loving all the frosting and I made sure to sneak away some of the finished ones to frost for everyone else to eat too. As much as I love eating cookies made by little kids, I also know they lick their fingers every other second while doing it.
Christmas Eve was a bit crazy. By dinner time, the big kids were in charge of getting everything organized and prepared because my mother-in-law came down with the same stomach bug that hit my father-in-law earlier in the week. We had appetizers to prepare on top of preparing a meal and feeding the kids. When dinner was finished, we gathered around the tree and got their PJ gifts out, tried reading through the nativity, but I think by that point, we all were wanting the kids in bed. It wasn't the Christmas Eve I was used to or hoping for, but at least the kids were having fun.
L-R, Tyler (almost 2), Ellie, Brinley, Joshua (7), Beau (2.5), and Chase (5)
letter to Santa from Joshua--Isn't it the sweetest!?
That night, the adults spent time wrapping gifts, chatting, watching Home Alone and eating holiday snacks and cookies. I love preparing the girls stockings and getting everything situated for Christmas morning. I couldn't wait for them to see what Santa brought them!
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