night in order to have Christmas morning with his mom, dad, brother and sister in law, and sister and three kids. As you can see, Silas wasn't the only one feeling overwhelmed, we had to open presents in stages throughout the day. There were so many fun toys to play with, plus stockings, it was a whirlwind! The kids had tons of fun opening presents, handing out presents, and helping Aunt Christine open presents for her unborn baby girl due later this spring. There was not a dull moment the entire time we were at the Bury house. On top of having the four kids (ages 5 and under) there were also the three dogs (one that belongs to Grammy and Pops, and the other two made the drive from Colorado with Uncle Chris and Aunt Christine). Needless to say, nap times were critical each day for kids AND grownups!
I know that on your wedding day, you pledge to make your in-laws a part of your family, just as you pledge to remain wed to your husband...however the process is not overnight that they really become your own family. I don't know exactly when it started, but I know that now my inlaw family is my own. I remember when I was a teenager praying that I would have a mother in law that I could connect with and talk to, God TOTALLY answered my prayers above and beyond! I gained an incredible brother and sister in Mandy and Chris, and I completely love their individual families. When Jordan and I got married, Chris was just recently engaged and Mandy was pregnant with her first baby. So I feel like Christine (Chris' wife) and all of Mandy's kids joined "our" family, instead of feeling like I joined theirs. I got to have such special time with my nieces and nephews (including about an hour of helping Abbie straighten her beautiful curls with the flat iron I got her for Christmas...talk about bonding! Only curly haired girls can connect in such a way!), awesome game time with Chris, Christine and Mom, a special girls' lunch with just me and Mandy, and a ride to the airport with Pops while Silas slept so we could have our own talk time. What a gift! Thank you God!
Silas and Brandon had a blast together the whole time we were there. They golfed (in Grammy's house, while we all chased after them reminding them to not hit walls), they played in the back yard (in the sunshine of course), raced cars, walked the dogs, and of course soaked the bathroom during bath time. As you can see, it was a boy bonding experience to be remembered.
Although these are just towels, it often felt like there were real animals running around the house while we were there...
Here are all the kids getting ready to blow out the
candles on our Happy Birthday Jesus cake. What you can't see is the giant amount of drool that we are all hoping drops from Brandon's chin onto his lap instead of on to our cake. These are the moments we will remember when we need a reminder of our special trip!
So although the Christmas' were very different, they were completely precious to our family. We miss everyone so much already. Silas woke up the day we got home (after crying when we left the airport and airplanes the night before) asking for Pops and Boomer (their dog). He has gone to our sliding door several times looking for dogs. Every day when we pray, he is naming off all of the family we saw while in Arizona. We are so, so blessed!
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