1st Christmas

Evie traveled nearly 900 miles to see family for her first Christmas. And for a girl who was only in a carseat for a combined total of a couple of hours for the first 11 months of her life, she traveled exceptionally well. We were surprised by how little she slept in the car and were very glad that we downloaded The Grinch Who Stole Christmas and A Charlie Brown Christmas for her viewing pleasure and our sanity. She really was a trooper and we are proud of how well she did.

We spent the first leg of our trip in Alliance with Grandma Carolyn. It was lots of fun to spend Christmas weekend with her in her new home, which was my Grandma & Grandpa Marlatt's house. I have so many happy memories there and now Evie gets to have many of the same experiences that I did.

Grandma spoiled Evie rotten with presents and attention. They read lots of books, played the piano, and explored all the nooks and crannies of the house. We visited with our friends the Minnick's where Evie was entertained by Tara's son Jaxon and got to meet all of Jason & Jeff's kids. And of course Mom cooked a feast. Evie tried lots of new food, she loved the mashed potatoes and green been casserole.

While we were in Kearney, Evie and I visited some friends that I grew up with. My friends Shanna and Megan each have two kids that Evie had fun playing with. Interesting fact, I'm about 2 weeks older than Shanna and about 4 weeks older than Megan. Evie is about 2 weeks older than Irie (Shanna's daughter) and about 4 weeks older than Henry (Megan's son).

This picture reminds me of when Shanna and I first met. It was a stare down as well.


The beautiful girl in this photo is Shanna's 10 year old daughter Kaya. I missed getting Megan's 3 year old Lucy, as she was off playing.


We spent the week following Christmas in Kearney with Evie's Nana & Papa. Evie patiently waited for her cousin Jack, Aunt Jackie, and Uncle Jim to escape the blizzard in NYC and make it all the way to Nebraska. We were sure relieved not to have to deal with the difficult travel from the Northeast this year.

Once the Gill's were finally able to get a flight, Evie's Great-Grand Parents, Uncle Chuck & Aunt Joci, and Aunt Kathy all joined us for a late Christmas celebration. Everyone showered Evie with presents. She loved all the attention and was super happy to see Jack and follow him around.

Evie developed a real princess habit in Alliance that was solidified in Kearney. She started putting her hand out for you to help her up or for you to walk around with her. At first it was for balance on the slippery wood floors but it quickly turned into the action of a diva. This habit has continued back in Boulder. Erik and I are trying our best to break it and the whining that comes when we don't respond.

Evie's vocabulary expanded while in Kearney. She learned to say "bird, hello, and pretty." "Bird" was prompted by the thousands of geese on the lake behind Nana & Papa's house as well as all the feeders on the deck. "Hello," came about with her pretending that just about everything is a phone and "pretty" was mimicked when Nana was obliging Evie in an escorted walk around the house.

Monkey see, monkey do. Jack was throwing himself on the beanbag and biting it. Evie was quick to do just as he did.

Evie got to visit her Uncle Chris and Aunt Diane as well as cousins Lindsey, Mike and Sammy. Sam was such a sweetheart with Evie and we can't wait for the two of them to spend more time together.