A Daily Dose of Crazy: Christmas on the Farm

Christmas on the farm.....Not too many things that can ever compare to it. I simply love it. Nat is such a trouper and agreed early in our marriage Nat promised me that we could always be on the farm for Christmas and he has kept his promise every year. This year was extra special because it was Natalie's first Christmas as well as the first Christmas with Tracy and Sara officially a part of the family. Every member of the family made it and it was fantastic as always. We spent a total of 2 weeks up North and were able to visit lots of family and friends.

Nat worked from mom and dad's house the whole 2 weeks. It was much harder to keep the kids out of his "office" since there wasn't a lock on the door. Ty was by far the worst. Here is where I found him after he ran off while I was getting him dressed in the morning. He was making sure that no one bothered his dad. No clothes, but holding a gun. That's how Kentucky boys do it.

Mom and dad did a great job of letting my CRAZY crew invade their space for so long. I think they had to have enjoyed a little peace and quiet when we left. Ty's face here is priceless. Dad just kept protecting the baby. :-)

Natalie was never at a loss for love and attention. Here she is telling her Nana and Papa all about life with two crazy brothers.

I just love the smile she has in this picture. My sweet little lady.

One favorite activity on the farm is napping in the sun. There is always a race to the spot on the floor that is nice and warm in the sun. Myles wasn't as concerned with the sun as he was being as close to papa is physically possible. This is what vacation is all about.

Daddy snuggles are always the best kind.

Family pictures seem to get harder and harder the more kids we have. :-) This was after Christmas Eve church. All three kids did quite well in church but both Nat and I were EXHAUSTED after it. :-) They are a wonderful handful.

I just ADORE this little outfit that was given to us by my sweet friend, Amy.

Here is a little sample of the holiday baking we did. I'm pretty sure that everything was calorie free too (at least that's what I told myself for those 2 weeks). It was so much fun! My favorite was the melting snowman that Tracy made. She rocks on so many levels.

Ty had already decided that they bigger the present the better it must be. He thought that if he just sprawled out on the present then it became his. Good strategy, but not quite how it works.

One HUGE disappointment this Christmas was the lack of snow. I really don't ever remember having a Christmas with absolutely no snow. Last year we did some of the best snowmobiling we have ever done and this year the boys got tractor rides from Uncle Brian instead. They were pretty happy, but it just wasn't the same for me. I count on the snow in MN to give me my "winter fix" since Kentucky is just kind of pathetic when it comes to snow.

LOVE LOVE LOVE how much he adores his little sister. Never get tired of it.

One new tradition we started last year was Christmas Ribs. Ken and Jenny are two of the best chefs ever. I really mean EVER. They are simply amazing. Christmas day Ken brings over his smoker and we have ribs that are out of this world. They do so much work on those ribs. I thought you just sprinkle some flavor on them and put them on the smoker. Not so much. There is the marinating, cooking before the smoker, getting the smoker smoking, and then making sure they are cooked to perfection. We are SO lucky to have them in our family I just need to start having Myles and Ty watch them so they can cook Mama some good eats!!

Here we have deep fried bacon wrapped duck. I can't even begin to describe how amazing these were. They were of course marinated in some yummy splendor as well. I really can't wait for these again next year. I was popping them in my mouth like popcorn. SO amazing!! My mouth drools just looking at them.

My little Christmas Girl.

Natalie showing off her sweet new hat.

The Newlyweds!

Giving uncle Ken a "back rub".

Nothing like a relaxing movie....or nap in Ken's case.

Nana reading a story all about the true meaning of Christmas.

Creepers for sure!!!

Jen and Kade

Myles was quite excited about the jammies Trevor gave him. It meant he got an EXTRA big hug!

The favorite toy of Christmas 2011 was for sure Tori's doll house. Myles loved it and Ty seemed to love sticking the people through the window and dropping them out, then doing it again. Not sure if I should be worried about him....