Great Wolf Lodge with all the cousins

The kids had fun with the Curry cousins!

And with all of the Larsen cousins too!

A bit more sledding

We weren't sure who was more excited about heading down the hill . . .

Ida's flying solo . . . and loving every second!

Grandpa Curry and Sandy tried to sneak in a run without us noticing.

The ever helpful Ida, pushing Henrik back up the hill.

Happy Birthday Chad

Okay, so I'm a bit belated on this as Chad's birthday was 6 weeks ago, but it was a grand celebration worthy of including in the blog even if I am late getting it posted.

Everyone got to pick their "treat" instead of one big cake. Henrik picked a cookie while the rest of us settled for chocolate, chocolate cupcakes. YUMM!

Snow!

We finally got enough snow to try out the new sleds Santa left on the back deck!

. . . and the new shovels dad bought at Lowe's. So far the kids love shoveling almost as much as they love sledding. That will probably wear off by the end of the winter, but for now it's great!

Merry Christmas

Ida in her "ear-mugs" a few days before Christmas. These earmuffs inspired many smiles and numerous songs about reindeer.
Christmas Eve. The kids were able (and willing) to wear the knitwear again this year that Suzanne knit for them for last Christmas.

On our way to the family Christmas Eve service.

Christmas morning is here! Santa left some of the cookies behind (he had a lot to eat around the world), which the kids quickly gobbled up before opening any presents. They were supposed to be eating muffins, but snatched the cookies when we weren't looking.

"MOM!! DAD!! SANTA BROUGHT ME MY LOLLIPOP! IT'S RED AND PINK AND A HEART!" Yes, Ida really was that excited about her lollipop.

Santa also brought some headlamps for the kids, which unfortunately will come in handy when we lose our power yet-again (for awhile we were losing it on a weekly basis).

Yumm . . . cookies!

Santa Claus is in the house

Santa has entered the building . . .

and the kids are in awe.

Ida wanted nothing more than a pink and red lollipop shaped like a heart. Santa didn't bring it, but since she told him that's what she wanted we assured her that he would remember for Christmas.

All of the kids pose for a picture with Santa.

Henrik was not afraid of Santa this year and was willing to sit with him, even after receiving his gift and telling Santa what he wanted for Christmas.

Trimming the Christmas Tree

We had some help from the kids this year. It almost became a contest to see who could put the most ornaments on and of course, both wanted to put the Bumble on the tree after watching Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

Henrik was admiring their handiwork, while Ida perfected ornament placement and Hagen took a "snoozer".

I'm not sure if this picture shows it very well, but the tree is rather bottom heavy. Chad and Suzanne had to move a number of ornaments after the kids went to bed so that all the ornaments weren't on the bottom 1/3 of the tree. At least bottom-heavy means the tree won't fall over from too much weight at the top!