Christmas Continues

Even though we got back to Denver on the 2nd, we still had more Christmas to do at home.  He had presents to open from Pa Tom and Grandma Ann and we still needed to do Christmas with the Denver crowd.

We met all the Denver family for lunch on Saturday and Carter was excited to have Christmas again. He wants for nothing.  He got a new cowboy hat, remote control cars, fort building stuff, and a lot more.  He is one lucky kid!

I am pretty sure this look is going to cause me heartburn for many years.

A Week with No Parents

While we were in Mexico, Carter stayed in Kansas City.  He was so excited to have a week there with everyone.  It is wonderful to travel and not be worried about whether he is okay or not.  In fact, I think he would have stayed longer if we would have let him.  He got some great time with everyone, including the Berners, who came in from Texas after Christmas. 

He LOVED spending time with Audrey and Ella.  They went to the giant bug exhibit.

He got some movie time with Pa Joe.

Aunt Tasha and Uncle Trevor arranged for him to get some private horseback riding time.  Trevor's aunt was so nice to let him come up and ride.  Carter's face is the best.  He appears pretty proud of himself.

He was also catered to with bandaids and blankets to snuggle and relax at night.  We are told he needed this bandaid on his head because he bumped it on his blanket.  Blankets are apparently pretty dangerous.  He also wouldn't let anyone take it off for a couple days.

It was a long drive back home and none of us wanted vacation to end.

A Long Overdue Trip

The day after Christmas Scott and I headed to Mexico and Carter stayed with Pa Joe and Grandma Bonnie.  Scott and I have not taken a vacation for just us (without having anything else to do) in about 15 years.  Aunt Ellen and Aunt Janet have family that have a place in Cabo Pulmo.  They arranged for us to be able to go and spend a week at their house.  It is a great little town of about 100 people or so and not a resort town at all.  A few pictures from this wonderful trip.

The view from the deck.



Walking on the beach every day was wonderful.

We were able to do some snorkeling while we were there.  This was a huge step for me because I am not a big ocean person, and I admittedly am a terrible snorkeler.  It was great to be able to do it with Scott though, and he was so patient with me.

Not a great picture, but we were able to see a mom and baby humpback whale.  The migration was just beginning, so we were excited to be able to see them.  After this we also saw a giant pod of dolphins go by our boat.

We also went over to seal island and swam with the seals.  Two side notes. First, after returning to shore and going to dinner that night, we learned that one of the seals had been attacked by a shark that day.  It is a REALLY good thing that I didn't know that before we left.  And, second, seals STINK!

Probably one of the big highlights, especially for Scott, was the day we drove up to La Paz and swam/snorkeled with whale sharks.  We went there thinking we would probably have to search for a place and get lucky if someone had availability, because we hadn't made any reservations.  We walked in to the first place hoping and they told us they had spots on the trip leaving in 15 minutes!  We didn't even have time to go back to the car and change clothes.  This was probably better because it didn't give us time to think about it.  The whale sharks were HUGE and a little intimidating, but we did it and I am so glad we did.  Scott would have stayed in the water all day.

There were a handful of great little restaurants.  For New Year's Eve, we hit one up and had a great dinner, listened to the band and got to do some dancing.  The evening was wonderful and ended at about 10:00pm (also known as Cabo Pulmo New Year's time).  :) 



It was a wonderful week, and one the two of us hope we can do again soon.

Christmas at Grandma Helen's

After finishing up at Pa Joe's and Grandma Bonnie's, we headed up to Grandma Helen's for lunch and of course dessert for Carter.  Always wonderful to be at the farm and spend time with Grandma Helen.

We had a wonderful lunch and Carter did lots of playing.  He worked on his lincoln logs with Scott, played on the tractor in the barn and had a fun time playing his new fish game with Aunt Tasha, Uncle Trevor and Grandma Helen.  I love when we get to spend time with family.

Christmas Day 2014

When Carter woke up Christmas morning, he checked all the things he had left out the night before. Carter found evidence that Santa had been there.

We did stockings and opened presents at Grandma Bonnie and Pa Joe's.

Carter asked Santa Claus for a Dusty Crophopper that shoots balls out to put out the fire.  He was thrilled that Santa Claus listened and brought him just that.

Christmas Eve

After arriving in Kansas City on Christmas Eve, we all headed to church and then came back to get ready for bed.  Carter was very excited for Christmas this year, so we tried to make sure we made it extra special for him.

Before bed, Carter received a special call from Santa Claus.  He couldn't believe it.  Santa Claus also sent him a personalized letter this year.  It was all pretty amazing to a three year old.

Also on the Christmas Eve check list was leaving some eggnog (that's what Santa wanted this year) and cookies out for Santa and some treats outside for his reindeer.  Carter made sure it was all taken care of before heading to bed.

Catch of the Day

Our second attempt to head out to Kansas City for Christmas was better.  We woke up early on Christmas Eve and made our trek across Kansas.  We knew it would be a long drive for Carter, so we prepped a few things ahead of time of things to do in the car.  His favorite car activity was definitely fishing.  I found a project on Pinterest and made a fishing pole with a magnet lure and attached some magnets to felt fish.  The fish went on the floor and he could sit in his seat and "fish" for them.  It definitely helped kill some of the time in the car. Carter is an excellent rider though and the road trip was not bad.  We made it in about 9 hours.  Flying is definitely better though. :)