Christmas Break: Last Stop!

We got to Clemmons (my parents' house) in the late afternoon on the 1st. Greg & Poppy were excited to see everyone, and Nate was excited to finally start the big lego set he got for Christmas! (I wouldn't let him do it in Charlotte because I thought Gibson may either steal or choke on some of the pieces!)

This was his biggest set ever....1329 pieces!

That night, we introduced the kids to Monopoly. Naturally, Nate wanted to be the banker! We had fun but I forgot how loooooong that game is. In hindsight, we should have used the "short game" option. (Next time!) Anyways, this kept us entertained for 2 nights and Nanny & Poppy let us bring it home with us to Alabama. Fun fun!

Guess who woke up early and immediately went to work on the Millenium Falcon??? Yep, and he was done before lunch. I love how focused & determined he gets when working on these sets.

Nanny & Poppy took the kids to see "Trolls" that afternoon at the $2 theatre. (Why don't we have one of those?!) Abby had already seen it, but wanted to go back a second time. And since she got the Trolls soundtrack (plus a boombox) for Christmas, she had been singing the songs non-stop!

Tuesday the 3rd was a bit of a blur because Lora had her baby!!! (See previous post on that.) My parents and I left the house around 5 am and returned around 6 pm. Long day! Greg was in charge of the kids, and they visited Greg's great aunt, Marguerite, for a few hours. She lives about 20 away in the most amazing house. I think it has something like 10 bedrooms?! The kids loved exploring it and playing outside while Greg & Aunt Marguerite caught up. Then, Greg took the kids for a stroll around Wake Forest campus so Greg could reminisce about his college days :)

When we got back to Clemmons that night, Mom & I pretty much collapsed onto the couch. It was just an emotionally draining day because we were so worried about Lora, etc. (And also a wonderful day because we got to meet Baby Otis!) However, Poppy still had some energy & took the kids to a Wake Forest basketball game with Greg. It was Abby's first game !

 On Wednesday, N&P surprised the kids with a trip to the mall to do the Mall Jump!! These pictures don't do their huge grins justice. They had an absolute ball! Click here to watch a brief video of them jumping.

We almost talked Nate into doing a back flip, but he chickened out at the last moment.

Abby just enjoyed flying high, pointing her toes, and giggling! :)

After Mall Jump, Nate went to browse PS4 games with Poppy at GameStop, while Miss Priss wanted to ride the carousel. She was the only one on it and had her pick of seats!

I requested lunch at The Loop, because it was one of my favorite chain restaurants to eat while in college. My black bean burger did not disappoint!!! And I introduced the kids to "suicides"....where you get multiple types of soda from the machine and mix them all together. (Don't know why it took me so long to show them this! #momfail)

Wednesday night, the monopoly board was cleared (there still wasn't a winner but Greg was pretty much a shoo-in), and we tried a new game - Reverse Charades. It was super fun but I'll just say this: I will NEVER be on the same team with Nanny for this game again. She was the worst guesser!!! #blinddog #typewriter #DJ

Thursday, we went to Durham to welcome home Otis (see previous post), but not before dropping Greg off at the RDU airport. He was headed to PERU (!) for his brother's wedding. The kids were sad to see Daddy go, but oh so thrilled to see their newest cousin!!!

Proud Nanny with her 5th grandchild

Nate & Abby got a little bored with all the "adults just talking." but luckily they have a super cool uncle who plays drums. And who showed them how to play.

Let's just say, I'm glad they were out the sunroom doing this, and we could close the door :)

After an amazing visit with Baby Otis, Lora, and John, we headed back one last time to Clemmons. We finished off our trip with dinner the Pueb....a family favorite. Nate ordered an ADULT combo meal - enchilada, taco, rice, and beans - and ate every bite. Kind of amazing, kind of disgusting. He is a growing boy!!

The kids and I left Clemmons very early on the 6th, and headed back to Tuscaloosa before the bad weather hit. We made the 9 hour trip without much difficulty, and just a little bit of sleet. I was thankful we made it home safely, but also thankful for a very long & memorable visit with family!!