Christmas in Texas!

Colin and I are lucky to have parents that live within 30 minutes of each other. It makes for slightly complicated plans when we visit, but we don't mind since we get to see both of our families. Plus it gives us a good excuse to visit often :) This year we were lucky to even make it back home since airline tickets are so expensive, but we found a good deal for a 13 day stay that extended through the New Year! We were SO happy. We left on the 20th and stayed with my family for the first week, and then we switched to his family for the second week.

This is what Colin and my brother's did for most of our stay. This and being weird together haha. At least they like each other so much! I love that my brothers practically idolize Colin. He's pretty great ;)

While they were doing all sorts of boy things I got to hang out with this cutie!  He makes me so baby crazy. I hope our kids have even half the personality and looks as him!

Christmas morning! I LOVE our family tree with it's mismatched and homemade ornaments from when we were little. 

My babe and me Christmas morning!

My family!

The boys playing with the big family gift, an arcade game. They're spoiled!

Skyping with our missionary, the best part of the day. He has changed so much, it's crazy. And it's obvious from the things he tells us that he's a pretty exceptional missionary!

After all of this and before we left for my in-laws we spent some time in the pool and hot tub my parents just put in. That's Christmas in Texas for ya.

Christmas night at the in-laws place! We opened presents and played games with them after eating Christmas dinner. It was a pretty relaxed night which was nice after the chaos that my parent's full house provided.

Colin asked for a tin whistle for Christmas so he could play the theme song from the Lord of the Rings...an odd request I thought, but whatever makes him happy! I am quickly regretting purchasing this for him though. Haha.

Colin's brother came with his family a couple days after we got there and brought this little angel! She gave me baby fever like no other...it was overwhelming ;)

Especially after I watched Colin hold her. He's going to be such a good daddy. Too precious! 

Setting up the ancient Rokenbok toys for the girls. 2 out of the 3 cars wouldn't work but they still had fun. I think the adults had more fun with it than the kids.

He's still a boy at heart. "The Tower of Taylor, not to be confused with The Tower of Terror." Thanks babe.

Visiting the children's museum. It was an eye opening experience to the realities of having children which definitely suppressed the earlier outbreak of baby fever!

Last but not least...I couldn't not take this picture.

We also went to see the Hobbit and Les Miserables with Colin's family while we were there. I can always count on watching quite a few movies with them when we visit! I love it. Les Mis was something I would love to see over and over, but the Hobbit was beyond boring. Pretty disappointing to a family full of Lord of the Rings fanatics. But who cares, we were on Christmas break! Colin keeps saying it was hard to go back to work after taking such a long and relaxing break. Poor guy hehe. I miss Texas and our family so much already. I'll have to persuade Colin to take me back ASAP!