New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve was our last hurrah before we had to leave St Louis. Alex left a few days before and we were heading out in morning. We had bought a few party supplies and made tacos, 7 layer bean dip and sugar cookies to make our own sugar cookie pizzas. 

Sawyer got his shirt wet and decided to go shirtless for most of the party. 

Since we had to get up early to start driving, we had a normal bedtime for the kids and an early bedtime for us. We had our sparkling cider and fireworks (poppers and confetti pops) and said our happy new year prematurely. 

Happy New Year!

December

The kids using Jenga blocks to make dominos. 

When we went to St Louis, we stopped at a hotel. The girls thought that it was super posh. All the kids loved the pool. 

Sawyer looked like a little man after the pool. Jason wrapped his towel around him like this and he strutted around the hotel. 

Brooklyn's reindeer footprint art from school. 

Ezra's birthday was a fairy garden party at Homestead Gardens. Laneah really liked it and each of the girls brought home a pretty fairy garden. 

Alex flew in a few hours after we got to St Louis and the girls made him this sign on his door.

Alex got Laneah this giant gummy bear for her birthday. 

December was packed with activities, birthdays, work and traveling but it was also packed with lots of fun. 

St Louis

We drove to St Louis for Christmas this year. My poor mom was sick when we got there, but luckily got better before we left. My brother Alex flew in from Texas so we got to spend time with him as well. Because of school schedules, we didn't get there until the afternoon of the 23rd which didn't give us much time before Christmas, but we were able to stay for a little over a week and certainly packed a lot in.

Making gingerbread houses.

We did the Holiday in the Park at Six Flags in St Louis. It was fun, but the one in DC is much better.

Sawyer's different perspectives on the Ferris Wheel from "I can't look!" to "This is so much fun!"

We went to the kids favorite place, The Incredible Pizza Company. 

Sawyer loved air hockey.

After reading The Hungry Caterpillar to him one day I told him about the butterfly house at Nana's. We were in Maryland at the time and he got up and said "let's go see the butterflies at Nana's!" So it was on our to do list. I always enjoy going there.

We saw the movie Trolls

Jason and Alex took the girls to the city museum.

 The Science Center in St Louis is huge and it's free! You can't beat that. We hadn't been in a few years, so a few things had changed. There was so much to see.

 Digging for fossils

 There was a room just to make things and test them like a real scientist.

 Building the arch.

 We finished it, turned around to take a family photo (someone offered to take it for us) and right before we said cheese Sawyer knocked it down on all of us lol.

Bye St Louis!