A Cedar Hill Christmas

We all had such a great time in Cedar Hill, Missouri. Both of Matt's siblings and their spouses came so it was a full house of fun!

Here is most of the Bohle/Brooks family at Aunt Nancy and Uncle Rob's house for Christmas Eve dinner.

waiting to leave for the Candlelight Service - Grandpa B volunteered to watch for Santa with a sleeping Henry

Christmas morning - Henry definitely knew about presents this time! He sat down very politely in front of his pile and waited for Matt to open them, haha. He was not at all interested in ripping the paper - he's a very neat and tidy boy you know.
a fun wooden push toy!

the Legos were a huge hit - thanks Grandpa n Grandma B!

Our brother-in-law Sam cooked us a traditional English Christmas dinner complete with creamed parsnips, bacon-wrapped prunes, brussel sprouts with roasted chestnuts, bread pudding, figgy pudding, and raspberry trifle. Mothie cooked the turkey and dressing, Matt's mom cooked ham and dinner rolls, and his sis made a chocolate pecan pie.
the dogs patiently waiting for a ham handout

We broke open our Christmas crackers before the meal which is an English tradition. You and the person next to you each pull an end and whoever wins the middle part gets to keep the prize inside. There is also a paper crown and a joke included. Henry won a little train that he carried around the rest of the evening.

showing off our lovely crowns!

Matt's mom bought a Wii and a ton of games for us all to play together. Henry would constantly point at the tv if it wasn't on and say, "Gane! Gane!" He loved watching everyone playing the games. Wii Music was a big hit, especially the hand bell game...

Matt's family spent MANY years playing handbells at their church in Virginia, so I had to put my game face on to keep up! Did you notice Henry in the corner tapping to the beat? He LOVES anything related to music. Matt believes he's showing some Brooks talent already, haha.

Pawp getting in on some Wii golf action - he was really good!

a brother-in-law boxing match between Sam and Bryan - can you find Henny D?

Earlier in the week, Mothie and Pawp took us to see Santa's Magical Kingdom near Six Flags. A campsite was decorated with tons of lights and animated characters. Henry was on the edge of his car seat the entire time, pointing and saying, "Oooooo!" Mothie kept it all in perspective though as she said, "I bet this place is a MESS in the daytime." LOL.

Other activites during our two week stay included helping Grandpa with laundry...

playing with trains...

...and "playing" Big Fish, Little Fish with Uncle Sam. He was initially pretty wary of Sam and his beard, but he warmed up after a few "rounds." Sam was seeing how full a beard he could grow in a month - quite impressive there Sammy boy!

And finally...
thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for keeping our Bailey-wick one happy and warm ol' pug while we were in Maryland!