Goodbye 2011, Hello 2012

Well the kids certainly have no clue what the start of a new year means, but the parents are hopeful it's one filled with more great memories, more sleep and a less destructive Bryce :)

The past week 5 days we spent in Chicago with both Grammy Pammy and Grandmo/Grandpo. The kids got their second and third Christmas celebrations Windy City style.

Thursday afternoon was Jesus' birthday celebration times 2. The Haugstads were able to surprise the kids with several new toys and games. Of course it was the cool new toy for a few minutes before the youngsters tore into a different item.

Grandmo and Kevin were present to listen to Bryce's new rendition of the Alphabet Song. Not only did he successfully carry the tune, he was able to get many more letters out than just A B A B. This time he easily mentioned at least 62 percent of the letters and his grand finale rendition of a "next time won't you sing with me".

Speaking of firsts, Friday brought another one with our 2-year old destruction King. While in Riverside with Grammy, we got to hear Bryce count from 1-9 (which solidified that all our $$ being spent at daycare might just be paying off). He also managed to take her DirecTV remote and record 5 different Barney programs on her DVR.

The kids had fun petting Beau the kitty cat, taking naps in unfamiliar surroundings and most importantly ripping open more wrapping paper with additional gifts. Unfortunately the weather was rain most of the day and prohibited us from joining Dale for a trip to the Zoo to see Christmas lights.

The original Christmas Day celebration took place at home with a wonderful visit from Gran and Pappy. They got to wake up before the kids and see their reactions to Santa's overnight visit to West Lafayette. Kari so thoughtfully left his Royal Red Heiness a piece of Jesus' birthday cake and a cold class of milk from Payless. Just crumbs and a few sips of milk remained in the morning.

 

Christmas Eve

 

It's a Haugstad tradition to sit on the stairs and wait for an adult to make sure that Santa has stopped by.  Notice anyone missing?  Bryce could not, for any reason, be roused Christmas morning.  Eventually Bryce did join in on the festivities and we mocked up a stair photo after the fact.

 

 

 

Despite a nasty cold that traveled from Kari's head to Mommy's chest to Bryce's throat to Daddy's sinuses and ear, the Kecklers found a way to survive the 2011 Holidays. Even though our days and nights seem to be filled with telling Bryce "NO" or "STOP IT", we still find time to be thankful for all that we were able to give and receive during the Christmas time.

We wish all of you a wonderful 2012!