Christmas with my Extended Families

Whew...Christmas is over.  Well sort of, we actually have one more family gathering on Saturday afternoon...but for the most part, it's over.  & man were we busy.  We had one Christmas every day from Saturday through Tuesday and by the time Christmas night came I was worn out!  However, our family is so incredibly blessed & thankfully we were able to see EVERYONE this year!  

Saturday started off with Christmas for my mom's side of the family...which considering she's an only child, is really just my grandparents, my parents, my brother & his wife (& soon to be baby Harper), and our family of three.  FOREVER, we have had this Christmas celebration on Christmas Eve morning...but with changing work schedules and other Christmases to juggle around, that just couldn't happen this year.  So we gathered on Saturday afternoon at my grandparents' house and had a blast.  

The obligatory family photo before opening presents...

Elyse all dolled up...but it was a little warm in my grandparents' house so it wasn't long before she was down to just her leggings and a diaper! ha! 

Check out that nice little bump in between her eyes...yeah, we have NO idea how she got that!

Opening presents with Gigi

Look mom!  I've got your lip gloss!

My grandma got these new boots for Christmas and I honestly think her reaction was the best of the night...even though she KNEW she was getting them!  It was priceless!  And with all the health problems she has had in the last 5 years, it's nothing short of a miracle how well she is doing!  

All the ladies...with Elyse all ready for bed!  4 Generations!  

3 generations... Grandma, Granddaughter & Great-Granddaughter!

Who's There?  This is Elyse!  

On Sunday morning we headed to Christmas Sunday service at church & then Hubby & I drove around awhile so Elyse could get as much of a nap as she could...because however much she slept in the car was all she was going to get!  Sunday afternoon was Christmas with my dad's side of the family...which is quite a bit bigger than my mom's.  There are 24 1/2 (including Baby Harper) of us now and we were actually ALL under the same roof for the first time since 3 more great grand-kids have arrived!  

The whole crew!  

My family with my grandparents

My precious family of 3!

After making the kiddos wait long enough by taking too many family pictures & playing outside in the gorgeous weather, we headed inside for some present opening.  We only do gifts for the little ones now, but it's still so fun to watch their excitement and joy as they ripe into each present!  

Elyse was Aunt Millie's buddy for quite awhile!  

With her nose stuck in a book...again!  

All of us crammed in...LOVE MY FAMILY!!!

A picture of the great grand-kids with the great grand-parents...5 & counting!  

See...I told you someone would be sleepy since they missed their afternoon nap!  

& one last family photo of all the grandkids & our grandparents!  I don't see these 6 near as much as I used to when we were younger...but I still love them to pieces and am so lucky to call them my family!  

We headed home around 5 not long after we realized Elyse was running a pretty good fever.  She had her 1 year well check on Wednesday and is still having a little bit of a delayed reaction to the MMR booster she was given.  She runs a fever, we give her some ibuprofen, and she goes on about her day...but this momma sure doesn't like it when she feels even the slightest bit warm!

These extended family celebrations were a pretty awesome way to kick off our Christmas gatherings.  I try not to take for granted how incredibly lucky I am to still have both sets of grandparents' here with us to celebrate each year.  It's such a special time for them to see Elyse and be able to participate in raising her along with the rest of the army we've got behind us!  & when our entire family can get together and spend some quality time together, there's nothing more precious than that!

Next up, immediate family Christmas!