Christmas just doesn’t end for us. Yes. That means…MORE PRESENTS, MORE FOOD, MORE FUN!!!! WAHOOO!!! Unfortunately, this part 3 meant driving 400 miles to Arkansas. Well worth it though. I let Matt drive while I snoozed…so I suppose I deserved the flattering pic he took of me.

As I’ve mentioned before…My mother-in-law’s house is seriously my personally gallery. She has pictures GALORE there.

Now, it wouldn’t be Christmas without a little creative Photoshop touch. Matt got his siblings each a gift card to Wal-Mart (that I waited in line on Christmas EVE for half an hour to buy…and that’s all I was there for). These are not just any old gift cards. They are photo gift cards….with a little twist. We took some pictures off of Google Images and super-imposed their faces into them. So Lacey is a an elderly man with a walker, Markie is Hulk-Hogan, and Aaron is Richard Simons. I think those were worth the half hour wait in line.

And then it was time to go. Lots of hugs. After we left them Arkansas folk, we stopped by the cliffs for a quick look. Matt about had a heart-attack trying to keep our kids away from the edge.

So…Christmas, Round TWO…at my mom’s house. Just as good food, left us just as stuff, which left my clothes pretty stretched. I have no…absolutely NO, self-control around the holidays. I will be the first to admit, I’m not a natural born cook. I can do a good job with a meal every blue moon, but I really don’t enjoy cooking (it’s like a chore to me) and usually I do the minimal effort to avoid dishes.  So when I get to eat as much food as I want, made by someone else, for a super special occasion, that tastes soooooo delicious…I take full advantage of the situation…and EAT, EAT, and EAT some more! YUM, In My TUM! 🙂 …I think after the new year, I’m going to have to seach and find my gym card, dust it off, add some new upbeat tunes to my iPod and get my bootie into shape. …but until then…. hehehe

These next series are of my mom and Jeff (best step-dad in the WORLD…no joke!).  Aren’t they cute?!

So…where would I be without my lil sista. Amanda-Maria-Antionio-Bandarez (our pet names for eachother)…didn’t like my idea of doing pot roast for Christmas dinner. So she threw on an apron and whipped up a fabulous, super-tasty, glorifying Mexican fiesta dinner. It was sooooooo good I just about burst out of my clothes from eating so much. We had gobs and gobs of food.

Then, after we feasted, it as time for a little gift exchange. So this group of pictures is the series of pics I got when Niki opened up her “life-size-Barbie”.

The first pic is of her with her new plastic friend (who she named Nickalina).

The second pic is her carrying Nickalina off to her bedroom.

The third pic is of Niki showing back up to the living room wearing her doll’s clothes (how they fit, I’ll never know).

The fourth pic is the her brother’s reaction.

…I then went and found the near-naked Nickalina doll and had my Dad hold it for a quick snap shot. hehehe

Thought this series of Tate using his great-grandma for target practice…was priceless. I told Mimi a mere pillow wouldn’t save her.

Ahhhh….and then it was Christmas morning. A beautiful pink glow at the window told me a quick photo was necessary to capture the Christmas magic. This next shot is the view of my backyard at 7:34am…right about the peaceful silence was broken with Niki’s shrieking when she was her new Barbie Jeep Powerwheels. Yikes!

I hope everyone woke up today refreshed and happy. It is a beautiful day! Wishing everyone that warm feeling that being at home and around loved ones brings!

Happy Birthday Jan…and wishing you a fabulous next 50!