And A Happy New Year!

We celebrated the new year like we did last year, back in Massachusetts with family and friends.  Despite a long delayed flight that lost our luggage and didn't get us to Nana's house until after 2am, it was leaps and bounds better than last year's trip, when we discovered a lice infestation among us.  I'll take lost luggage any day over lice.

The kids were amazing, AH-MAY-ZING!!!!! through the whole ordeal.  I can shout it from the rooftops because usually, my sensitive brood is the first to crumble in a stressful situation like that, and things could easily have gone down the tubes in no time flat.  Part of me expected them to cry the entire flight. I was gritting my teeth and ready for a nightmare.  Instead, they were totally, UNBELIEVABLY calm and flexible, braving delay after delay, sleeping on the plane, in the car, and then in Nana's warm cozy beds.  It made it so much easier on Marc and I - in fact it really seemed like no big deal at all.

What did we do on vacation?  We just hung out!  The kids used their Christmas money to buy some new toys and loved playing with the ones that stay at Nana's house.

Nana and Papa keep the TV on for background noise.  Papa loves to watch the news, but he was nice enough to turn on Nick Jr. for the kids.  The kids enjoyed this treat a little too much I think!

Ben loved "doing his hair" in Nana's sink.  It was all fun and games until he got into Daddy's expensive hair pomade and gacked up his hair with handfuls of the gluey stuff!

We also had a great time visiting Revere at Nannie and Grey's house, Mary and Grace's house, and Nana Nancy and Pa's house.  Jack and Molly slept over for New Year's Eve weekend and Nannie and Auntie Eileen took them on the T to First Night in Boston with Mary and Grace.  It was a bit foggy, and Jack said the fireworks at 8pm lit up the entire sky like none he'd ever seen.  Then they went back to Eileen's house and dropped their own homemade tinfoil ball out the window on a fishing rod at midnight.  Grace dressed up as their own Lady Gaga and they banged pots and pans in the front yard.  I'm sure the neighbors weren't thrilled, but the four kids will be talking about their adventure for decades and lifetimes to come.  They stayed up until 1:30am, and the next day was not an easy one, but if you ask them, it was worth it!

If I learn how to upload video, then you can see for yourself the meltdowns that happened in the car on the way home and you can judge for yourself if it was worth it, lol!  At one point, Molly was screaming so hysterically (for a solid ten minutes) that Marc had to pull the car over because he couldn't drive safely listening to it.  It was all over her seatbelt, which she found to be uncomfortable.  We finally had no choice but to unbuckle her for the last part of the drive because it was the only way we could stop her from screaming.  I know that Marc and I spent years of our childhoods without buckles and survived, but letting Molly ride without one, even for ten minutes, felt akin to smoking in the schoolyard and risking getting caught by one of the nuns....not that I ever did that, I'm just making an analogy!

I hope Nannie and Uncle George send me the pictures of NYE because I'd love to see all the fun they had! (hint, hint)  This was the kids energy level the next day...

Even Auntie Eileen's homemade peanut butter cookies couldn't get them going much faster than that!

We'd missed Christmas Eve at Nana Nancy and Pa's house, but Nana made Sunday dinner for everyone, even with special extra treats like bracciole and cannolis!  I couldn't catch many pictures that night on account of the NYE hangover (the kids', not mine!) but it was DELICIOUS!!!  And the company was even better :)

Nannie and Quincy

Our 'scientist' at work making potions out of everyone's drinks at the table.  This was a great point of contention with his parents.  He was undeterred by all attempts to get him to cease and desist, however, and eventually landed in a time-out in the bathroom and caused our early exit. 

Mmmmm Dessert!

The Mallett Boys

Loved this :)

We enjoyed a few unseasonably warm (meaning 45 degree) days.  It was fabulous to be outside this year, whereas last year there was 4 feet of snow on the ground and it was frigid.

Even Auntie Treecie and Milli couldn't resist joining the fun!

We played "follow the leader", and when it was Ben's turn he ran and ran!  Then he turned to me and said "I'm exhausted!  Can we go back now?"  I told him he was the leader so he could go wherever he liked.  Then he turned around and ran and ran back toward Nana's house.  By the time we caught him, he was lying on the street.  "I'm too tired to take another step!" he promised.

Molly thought it looked like fun, so she joined him.  We were "following the leader" after all!

Mommy was pretty psyched to see that wet asphalt makes for a darn good photography backdrop.

Holey moley, is that girl cute or what?

But watch out for her brother, because he's a little TOO easy on the eyes...I fear what his teenage years look like.  I swear I didn't Photoshop.  His eyes really are that blue.  And his lips and cheeks really are that pink.  We are in so much trouble...

Daddy even got to shoot some hoops!

And then we went next door to Mr. Tetreau's house.  Papa knew he had a Christmas village set up for his grandkids and wanted to show Jack, Molly and Ben.

You just don't get trees like this in Illinois.  At least not our part!  It was nice to soak them in for a bit.  

The village was amazing!  Especially to little people.

This plane was Ben's favorite part.

He also liked the campfire.

Jack loved the working cable cars.

And Molly's favorite was the horses.

Little did she know that Mr. Tetreau had ponies of his very own in the back yard.  That's where we went next.

Mr. Tetreau could be Grey's long lost brother!

Seriously, how lucky were we!?

Even luckier, because Nannie and Auntie Allison came and took the kids out bowling the day before we left.  "Bowling" of course is a euphemism for "arcade games and dollar store".  This time they really did bowl though, with Molly being the only kid to finish 10 strings.  Go Molly!  Of course they came home with buckets of cheap arcade winnings, which oddly didn't make it onto the plane when we left.  Hmmm, wonder how that could have happened??

But of course, the memories did make it onto the plane.  :)

I tried Deb, really I tried!  But those were the best I could get!  Buncha screwballs I tell you!

There are a few more fun antics from Team Screwball, but they'll have to wait for tomorrow, because I've got a New Year's resolution to keep (more on that later) and I'm pushing the limit on bedtime!  (actually, I'm an hour late, but let's not split hairs)