A couple of weeks before we left for our trip to the coast we talked to the kids about what to do about Christmas. They said they did not want to have Christmas anywhere but at home and so we all mutually agreed that we would do Stockings on our trip but save all of the presents for when we got back the next day. It was good they wanted to do that because we were going to do it that way anyway. It is too hard to pack presents and they would not have fit anywhere in the car. So Christmas morning on the coast the kids actually slept in until about 7:30ish. They came into our room and opened up their stockings. I told the kids they could open them and look at them for a bit but they were not playing with anything until we got home. I did not want anything broken or taken or messed with and felt it was easiest to keep it put away. They were fine with that.
Jeremy's family had a big present that was for all the kids in the house. They were all extremely excited to open it and find nerf guns, one for each kid. Those guns were powerful and I was not about to get hit with one and so I played the Mom card and said that no adults were to be shot at. No adults meaning specifically me, I was not worried about any other adult, I just did not want to be hit. They got the message and I was not hit by any of the bullets. :)
Madison got a Doc McStuffins kit for Christmas and she looked adorable in it. I really love all of my cute nieces and nephews. It was a lot of fun spending the week with all of them.
The Peterson Family has never done any type of gift exchange. We always get presents for Bob and Alison but never with each other. I suggested we do a family gift exchange since we were all going to be together on Christmas. Everyone was down with that idea and so we set the limit to between 5 or 10 dollars and we drew names. What amazes me is that not one family member drew the name of someone in their own family. In the Lutes family gift exchanges we always have people getting someone in their own family. This was crazy!
So about 9:00 we all gathered together and I decided that it was my game and therefore my rules. So I had it done the way I was used to since it was a good formula that works. One person starts and they give their gift, then that person gives their gift and so on. If it happens that we get to someone who has already gone then we move on and start again with someone else. It was crazy and loud and pretty chaotic but no matter what was happening or not happening the ball was always rolling and someone was always opening or handing out their gift. I loved it!
Jeremy had me and he wrapped my present in newspaper which I thought was pretty cool but then he wrapped it again over the paper with packing tape. It was impossible to open until he gave me his pocket knife, then it was easy peasy.
I had James and I was excited to give him the ball and bat that I picked out for him.
Ryker gave Bailey a portable Ping pong ball set and the two of them had fun trying it out.
Alison handed out the presents she had for all of the Grandkids and they were excited to find coloring books and crayons and treats. Perfect for a road trip home. They were all also given money in the form of change. Kenedy and Ryker each got a roll of quarters while Avy and Rylee each got a roll of dimes.
Kefford and I gave Bob and Alison their gifts from our family. A wrestling game and nuts for Bob,
And a holder for pictures for Alison.
Later I went to the store with Trista and Sara and found this cute bow I had to try on.
While we were at the store Kefford, Jeremy and Dustin decided to take a dip into the freezing ocean. Kefford and Jeremy were done and entering the house by the time I got back so I missed watching them freeze. Luckily my husband knew I would want pictures and he made sure Whitney took some for me. I asked Kefford how it was and he said it was so cold he literally could not breathe. Yikes! I had entertained thought of braving the cold ocean and going in, but those thoughts quickly turned to thoughts of no way.
I went down to the beach with Trista and Kenedy to watch Avynlea and Ally play in the water. Crazy girls.
I got a new Ariel bow in my stocking and I love it and Kenedy took a picture of it for me.
Sara let me borrow her new jacket to go down to the beach and so I took a picture with my jacket wearing twin Trista who was wearing her new jacket.
Madison got some Chapstick and it was making me laugh the way she rolled it all the way up and then applied it.
Later that evening Kenedy and Avynlea left to go hunt mussels with Bob, Dustin M. and Trista. When they got back they showered and put their pajamas on and then Whitney called to tell us that Dustin cooked up some of the mussels if they wanted to try them. They did and so we went over to check them out. I was horrified when I saw what those things looked like. I am not exactly sure what I was imagining when I thought about the mussels they were going to eat but it definitely was not what I saw. It honestly looked like the insides of a cat to me and I could never be talked into eating it. Kenedy and Avynlea were braver then me and each tried a little bit while I tried not to be sick. Seriously gross. Good for them, they said that they were not that bad.
I don't think the picture does justice as to how sick they looked.
Once we got home Kenedy took a picture of her gift from Jenna which she loved. She wanted to send Mikell and Jenna a picture with it with her necklaces on it. She definitely needed a necklace tree and it was a perfect gift.
