GB Christmas 2016

After we returned from Disney we headed to GB for the rest of our Christmas festivities.

Cam's first Christmas!

Keeley Grandkids

Christmas morning!

Cam turned 6 months on the 28th!

We celebrated Jesus' birthday with our traditional green and red cake.

We also played plenty of ticket to ride!

Owen's first Christmas! 

Trying out all the new presents! (This present incidentally, I threw away when we moved and Reese has asked about it nearly everyday since then...my bad.)

The picture of intensity!

We got a fun package in the mail with some hand-made hats from my favorite knitter, Grandmama!

Christmas 2016 in the books! (Well 7 months or so ago...)

Christmas Festivities 2016

What turned out to be our last Christmas in KC...we had fun with our traditional holiday events and outings!

Ready for Reese's school program

I'm not sure why this counts as Christmas other than it was in December and they are cute.

We went to Journey to Judea (live nativity experience) with our small group friends, we will miss this tradition!

Cade's school art was on display at Barnes and Noble.  He found his Santa...this was not the "art display" I was thinking it would be...

Reese was the narrator for her school program.  This involved A LOT of memorization.  She did an amazing job!

Our 6th (or 7th?) trip to Crown Center Santa with the Heine family!  Our group keeps growing and growing!

A phenomenal Santa pic if I do say so myself.  Actually Santa is the one bringing us down here.  Look alive, man.

And finally, some Christmas cheer on ugly sweater day at school.  The jumper will win any competition. Ever.  I may have to break it out just to wear to the grocery store or something around here this year!  Haha!

Fall Fun 2016

We were able to squeeze in some fall fun going to the Trick or Treat Night at Olathe North and the pumpkin patch!

We Trick or Treated with the Birt's around the neighborhood and scored enough candy to last us until Easter!

Cade's class Halloween party was my "room-mom" debut.  Other than over-estimating the cutting skills of a kindergartner (the mummy craft took for-e-ver) it went smoothly!

And of course, we painted our pumpkins!  (Which if I didn't have this pic of it, I would not know that we did this because I have no recollection of it. #3kids)

This all leaves me wondering what the fall will look like in Arizona...I've got to think that pumpkin patches aren't really a thing here.  I'll let ya' know...

Easter 2016

This year we traveled back to the Bend for Easter.  It was a much more uncomfortable ride then I was expecting...with this belly.

We attended a very fun 80th birthday party for Matt's Grandpa Schartz which included an egg hunt with all the extended family.  The kids had a blast!  And I took zero photos of the fun.

Other than this freaky face-swap photo of Cade and I.  Face swap is totally creepy.

Heading to church on Easter Sunday!

Obligatory family photos...

My mom had a delightful Easter meal for our crew after church.

Complete with pig napkin rings...where else but Art and Connie's house?

Not many photos but a fun weekend was had by all.  Always a privilege to get together with family, especially as we take time to celebrate the ultimate sacrifice that Christ paid for us.  He is Risen, indeed!

Christmas Fun of 2015

We have the best Christmas celebrations around and this year definitely lived up to the hype.  First, Beth flew into Kansas City and took our car (and our kids) back to GB on the first morning of Christmas break giving Matt and I the day to shop...and eat out on the Plaza!  Woo-hoo!

After our day of shopping and wrapping, we headed to GB as well.  #eyesontheroad

We checked out a new park in GB that is all the rage.  It's equipped with ziplines and the coolest climbing gyms for little toddlers up to bigger kids.  It was a nice mild day and the kids could've stayed and swung for hours!  (It's at the old Morrison school area for you GB readers.)

Plenty of cards and game-playing.  It's just what you do when you're with family!

Beth was in charge of all the breakfast meals and she took her job very seriously.  We were spoiled for sure!

It has worked well the past few Christmases to start out on the Keeley side spending time together leading up to Christmas and celebrating Christmas on Christmas Eve and then we move over to the Sauder side for celebrating the new few days.  This year the kids and I stayed in GB for 10 days, spending 5 at the Keeleys and 5 at the Sauders.  (Matt usually has to head home sooner for practice.)  Some people may think that's too long to be away from home and routine.  I disagree.  GB is my happy place.  I wish I could live in my parents' basement year-round.  Seriously.  Now back to pics of cute kids...

Keeley Cousins in Christmas Jammies

Mike and Jan even arranged for Santa to drop by this year and bring some presents!  The kids thought it was so cool!

Christmas (Eve) Morning

Decorating Ginger Bread Houses.  Grandma Jan always has tons of fun things planned!

Grandma and Grandpa with Cade and Reese before Christmas Eve Church Service

It's always very special to have everyone together over Christmas!  We're so glad that Aunt Beth got to stay in Kansas for so long this year!

Christmas Eve service with the Sauder side.  The gang's all here!


Time for presents!

Matt asked for these...

We kept with our tradition of making a birthday cake for Jesus and celebrating that Christmas is about the miraculous birth of Jesus, the Savior of the world!

Hope Jesus didn't mind...there was only one S in the set...

Reese took a special outing to the library with Aunt Gentry.  They really have a neat children's section at the GB Public Library.

Reese got a fancy Barbie camper this year!  

#awkwardphoto

We are beyond blessed to get to spend so much time with our amazing families over Christmas break.  It's always so relaxing and fun...something we all look forward to all year long!  We are thankful for the time off where we get to spend time together making memories and celebrating the hope that we have in our Savior Jesus Christ!