The West Bunton Experience: Christmas at Mom's

We had a fabulous time at my parent's in North Carolina. Anthony, Allison, James and Charity were all able to make it home as well. The five days we spent at home were filled with many fun activities and conversations. It is fun to all be in the same house because you have so much more of a chance to get to know each other and talk. Below are some Christmas memories.

We introduced everyone to Settlers of Catan. I believe the paterfamilias won this round of the game (beginnings luck, I'm sure). "All hail George! Lord of Catan!"

Sitting down (or thinking about sitting down) to a delicious Christmas Eve family dinner. I love having family dinners. I can't wait for the day my personal family can have them. We are currently lacking in both table and father, but at least the kids sit down to eat together three times a day and that is 50% of the family--not bad.

Our post dinner and pre program Christmas Eve activity. No wonder Tony's back isn't getting any better. Those darn kids keep beating him up!

My mom, every Christmas that I can remember, has given us new PJs on Christmas Eve. The tradition continues and more often than not recently, the PJs are matching (at least w/in a gender). What fun!

We generally have a nice, big family breakfast Christmas morning before present opening. My other favorite tradition (besides the PJs). Featured below are two of my mom's helpers.

The Hash Brown Man

The Meat Man

Tim surveying the Christmas festivities in his new PJs. I really like Tim.

Christmas stockings.

One of Gillian's favorite presents. As soon as she opened it, she got down and started typing furiously on the keys. She took to the computer so quickly I almost expected her to come up to me and ask if she could install Linux on our home computer. I knew she and her Uncle Jamey had a close bond, but I didn't fully understand all the ramifications.

James' favorites were predictably his transformers and his Bionicles. He has played with them non-stop since Christmas, thus making it a present for me as well as for James. Ahhh--the gift that just keeps giving.

Tim tried out his new silicone on a face cast of James over the break. It worked wonderfully well. It is so much lighter that you don't get any of the stretch distortion you got with the algenate and I think it makes the process a lot less onerous for the castee.

My favorite part of the cast was the prank that Tim played on Tony with it. Or maybe it was James who pulled the prank. Or maybe the prank was pulled on James. I can't quite remember (pregnancy brain). It involved a fake James "sleeping" on Tony's bed. What I do remember is that the prank and Tony's reaction, were priceless.