Kate and Khan

Of course there are hundreds of pictures, but here are a few. Wowzers, actually I'm posting a lot of pictures here. I wonder when I'm going to max out my space on blogger. Not yet, apparently.

Well, Christmas 2009 was a good Christmas; we had a nice visit with our family. Most of them, at least. We missed Shari and Lori this year. We weren't entirely healthy, but it was much better than last year in terms of sickness.

I didn't get to see much of my friends, either. I suppose that's just life sometimes, but it still sucks. I got to see Dana :-) but I missed Sara, Brandy, Mackey, and Kristen. Boo. Love you girls.

Ok, back to the recap.

First of all, we got there in one piece. It was a long journey from house to airport, through airport, on plane, through airport, on shuttle, in Dad's expedition, and then finally, Chippewa. Lily still loves Greta.

Lily and Grandma Louise hit it off really well, too. Lily loved the peek-a-boo book that Grandma Louise read to her.
Then Lily got a couple of early Christmas presents and it was time to play in the snow.

Crud, I had a picture of Grandpa and Lily in the sled here. Well, see below for that; it was a repeat anyway.

Khan joined in on the sledding fun.

Outdoor fun can only last so long, though. Back inside, Lily shared her blanket with Greta.

After a slow couple of days, people started showing up. Erik was there.
Ben, the Beastmaster, was there.

Great Grandma and Great Grandpa (who need shorter nicknames) were there, too.

Lily loved Greta.


Dad was a baby hog. And Lily loved Greta.
Christmas Eve, we had our traditional gift opening. Erik got books.
Everyone got Lily's handmade ornaments with photos.
Lily got a box. Yup, Lils, that's it. Just a box.
After presents, we played Go Fish while we waited for the Great Winter Storm That Wasn't.
We did make it over to Mom's on Christmas Day. (This picture is neither of Christmas Day nor my mom's house, but it works with my story. Most pictures aren't in order, but you could probably figure that out.)
Lily got lots of toys from Santa, and her closet was restocked by Nana, Shari, and Lori.
Erik tried to steal this toy from her. Too bad he didn't; she's bored with it now. Sigh.


Lily bonded with Ben -- finally. I think she wasn't a fan of his beard, but I'm only basing that on the fact that she hates it when either Mama or Elmo wears a hat or sunglasses. Perhaps she's suspicious of why the need to cover one's face? I'm not sure, but for the first couple of days, Lily would have nothing to do with Ben. She turned her head and pretended he wasn't there. Fortunately, he didn't give up, and before we left, Lily was in love with her Uncle Ben (tee hee). She calls him "Bee."



Then we braved the Mall of America. I thought Lily would enjoy the rides at Nickelodeon Universe, and she did like the train. But she did not like the merry-go-round. We won't be trying that again anytime soon.


I also thought maybe we could do a little shopping, since, you know, we were at a mall. But, a bored brother and husband, a crabby Kate, a crabby toddler, and a crowded mall do not make for good shopping conditions. But hey, at least Lily loooked cute in the new sweater Lori made for her.


Well, back at home then. I suggested Khan take Lily outside again to see if she would play with the snow. I needed them out of my way so I could start packing. Florida wimps, though, weren't outside for even a minute and decided it was "too cold."

So then, on our last day of vacation, with most of our stuff packed, Nana offered to watch Lily while we went out for a bit.

And just in case she needed it, she had Ben's help, too.


So Khan and I went out for late lunch/early dinner. Just the two of us, no toddlers, real conversation, and a little bit of that Midwest-friendly service. Not a bad way to say "the end."