Christmas

Finally getting around to post about Christmas!

We were so blessed by our friends and family this year.  Teddy got loads of awesome toys and clothes.  I think he got a little overwhelmed by having to open up the presents before getting to play with them and my FIL was so anal about making him pose with each picture.  Teddy kept running off to play with something he's had forever and sort of decompress and would come back and open a few more.

 It really bothers me how FIL gets with Teddy now.  He will not listen to anything Doug or I say about what we want him to do, what we think is best etc. and insist that Teddy sit this way, set the table, eat this or that.  I used to hate that he would basically ignore Teddy and just swing in and say hi and then walk off without explanation but I'm not so sure this is any better.  And he's been gone hunting a lot lately.  The other day he came home again and Teddy did not want to leave his side to go down for his nap (after FIL already ruined lunch due to insisting Teddy eat all of something and kept trying to bribe him with crackers).  I think he was really afraid that Grandad would be gone again for a long time without so much as saying good bye.

Anyway, back to Christmas.  We've started the tradition of giving Christmas jammies on Christmas Eve.  The big winners right now are the loads of Hot Wheels that he got, a CAT bulldozer that can be assembled and disassembled with a toy drill from Uncle Jon Jon, a tool set with a drill and screws (he already had several other types of tools) from my Dad, a toy wagon from my mom, a race and crash track from us and his favorite of all:  a Melissa and Doug latch and lock puzzle from my mom.  He will play with that puzzle for like 30 minutes.  We're still trying to sort through things, divide them up between the upstairs and downstairs etc. 

I got a lot of maternity clothes, which I really needed.  Doug got a good bit of shirts, which he also really needed.  And he was all excited about black socks- nerd. 

Overall the experience of family this Christmas was disappointing.  We left Alaska for lots of reasons but one of the main reasons we came back here versus anywhere else in the country was so Teddy could be near family.  And we have a good bit very close by and they always act like we don't even exist.  It was like that before but we thought after Teddy things would be different.  As much as I can complain about my family growing up, everyone local came together on Christmas and Thanksgiving.  I didn't hear from any of my siblings and we actually spent most of Christmas Day alone, just the 3 of us.  FIL even went to play basketball, after being gone and working most of the day.  Seriously, he will not work for weeks at a time to hunt etc. but doesn't think twice about planning it so he ends up having to work on Christmas Day.  My mom bailed after about 2 hours in the morning.  I couldn't even bear to make dinner as I planned and we ate Sheetz.

I guess as we have more children and they grow it will feel better, even if we don't have the presence of aunts and uncles, grandparents etc.  And I know that no matter where we end up in the world our family is complete as long as we have each other.