The Bury 'Christmas Vacation'

So I am a little late getting out our holiday pictures. It has been a daunting task since we had so many aspects and so much time...what a HUGE blessing!

Jordan took two and a half weeks off of work and we packed the Xterra to DRIVE our TWO KIDS from OREGON to ARIZONA. Yes, it is true. Mapquest estimated the trip to be 25 hours.

So, we hooked up the DVD player, stocked the cooler with snacks, and took off down the I5 stretch. We had a great plan. After getting everyone buckled in around 7:30, we started a movie for Silas. Surely by the time the movie was over at 9 or 9:30, he would just fall right to sleep. He sleeps in his car seat often, no problem. Well, at 3 a.m. this stinker was STILL AWAKE. He didn't watch any more movies, he didn't talk, he didn't cry, and he didn't sleep. For nearly 7 hours he simply sat in his car seat. We even tried the NyQuil after midnight. Nothing. He finally conked out around 4 am and we of course had to stop by 6 am for gas.

Despite the crazy night, Jordan was able to get us to northern California through the night drive. I slept a little (more than Silas) and was ready to take shift two of driving.

Jewel was a total champ, slept the entire night, and since it was too cold outside she had her stretching time on the drivers seat while we unfolded our legs and ate our breakfast.Silas was remarkably happy, and the stop gave him just enough of a refreshment that he was WIDE awake when we got back in the car.We watched more movies than I will admit as they day wore on. However, there was not a single tear from either kid. Silas also did not eat the entire time we were driving. Finally in the evening we got him to eat one cheese stick. So, 29 hours later, we arrived. Silas only slept a total of 6 hours the entire trip, and the final three I spent wedged between their car seats holding in Jewel's pacifier and holding Silas' hand. But, we totally survived.

cuteness

Christmas Fun

Check out the HUGE ornaments we got for our tree this year!!!...

Ok, just kidding. We didn't get a real tree this year. I was sad to have to let that go, it is one of my favorite parts of Christmas, but it was worth it to spend the 2 1/2 weeks in Arizona with our family instead.

Plus, having Christmas with a two year old is far better than any tree could be. On the night we took out the decorations, Silas became filled with the child like wonder that makes Christmas so special. He called everything "The Christmas". He would say "Hey Mom, let's go look at the Christmas." and then lead me over to the stairs where we wrapped greenery and lights up the banister. He made dramatic gasps at each item that was taken out of the Christmas box, and he even got to have lights up in his own bedroom. The greatest part, above all others, was setting up the nativity scene. We talked about Mary and Joseph and the shepherds and wise men...and of course about baby Jesus. I was really feeling like he was "getting" things, taking to heart the importance of Jesus coming and the miracle of the story. He started carrying baby Jesus all around with him and talking to him. I would frequently hear the following statements and smile to myself:

"Baby Jesus, you like to walk down the stairs? No you don't? Oh that's Ok, I'll carry you down. Oh yes, you are welcome!"

"Mom, I have to go potty, quick go get baby Jesus so he can watch me!"

"See this Baby Jesus? I can go potty all by myself...are you saying 'good job' to me Baby Jesus?"

"Look at this, Baby Jesus is doing push-ups!!"
(our baby Jesus has his hands extended toward heaven in a very worshipful manner, also very useful for exercising)

"I'll be back in a minute Mom, I think I hear baby Jesus, he needs me."

"I choose Baby Jesus to watch me eat dinner tonight."

"I'm not tired Mom. Is baby Jesus sleeping. No, I don't think he is, I saw that his eyes were open."

"Baby Jesus is riding on Thomas the train! He likes Thomas."

"I will bring Baby Jesus in the car with me, he can sit by me in my car seat."

We also love being in Portland for the winter weather. We gladly visit Arizona for some mid-winter sunshine, but we all love to bundle up and experience the cold....well, most of the time...

But, no cold nose or toes is a match for snuggling by the fire to warm up. Add a Daddy and a cup of hot chocolate, and things can turn around pretty quick.

J's and S's

As a coincidence, we ended up with S's and J's for names in our family. It is actually pretty fun to match each other :) These are pictures from the photo shoot our friend Kyle did for us when we took our Christmas pictures. I could fill 100 blog pages with these pictures, so many of them turned out really cute! But these were a few of my favorites that I had to share.

Oh, Jewel

Christmas in November

Not all of the Burys will be together for Christmas this year, soooo....we started early. Because, really, what is more fun than watching the kids open their gifts??

You will see the running theme of Thomas the Train throughout these presents...

The kids also got their ornaments from Grammy,

Cute shirts from Great Aunt Nancy,Some great new books

And...the treasured pistol :)

These came from Aunt Christine, who also equipped the little boys with dart guns over the summer... although these are less dangerous in that nothing actually shoots out, we spent the majority of the week explaining what is ok and not ok to shoot. Uncles are Ok to shoot, baby girl cousins are not.

The Shiny Choo Choo

In the words of "Wilhelm" from our Gaslight Theatre visit...this is the coveted Shiny Choo Choo that will save Silas from becoming the Christmas grinch :) Phew!