On December 26th, we headed up to TN to spend some time with Patrick's side of the family. The ride there was long with damage to I-40 in the mountains, but made better with a stop at Big Ed's on the way to the farm. We were happy to bring our favorite pizza and were met at the house shortly after by Jessi, John and the kids who also drove in for a few days. That evening we exchanged our Christmas gifts and had a great time celebrating together.
The next few days were a whirlwind of activities. Grandpa kept the kids busy with a list of things he wanted to do with them: get and decorate the Christmas tree, capture minnows from the creek, fishing, fort building, go-kart riding, driving practice, remote control car play, movie watching and general farm things. We were also able to attend church and visit Great Grandma Kelly who will be 100 next month. It was really nice to talk with her and I am always amazed at her overall joy and memory recall. And a quick visit from Aunt Brenda while we were there made it even better!
We were grateful for some unseasonably warm temps which meant some good time for the kids to play outside and some great walks for me and Jessi. We even got to sit on the porch for a bit before the temps dropped pretty dramatically. Anna, Patrick, Paige and John kept up with their daily running. Teddy and Kes held a mutual truce most of the time and also enjoyed the outdoors. Let's just say Teddy has been worn out from his farm dog life.
One thing I loved was getting all the kids together to do Oreo gingerbread house building. I was really proud of how they all worked with patience and used kindness to share ingredients. It's not an easy task to work with little houses, but they had a fun time and an Aunt Heather craft was just what we needed on a chilly day. In fact, I loved spending one on one time with each of my nieces and nephews, chatting with them or reading or doing stickers, really meeting them where they were at and finding their interests. It's so cool to see them growing up and becoming their own people.
We hit the road back home Tuesday to spend New Year's Eve back home together and get ready for a few things before school starts back up. Goodbye 2025!
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