Branden and I had the opportunity to share two weeks off of work together over the holidays. We jam-packed our vacation full of family and friends and Annika's first Christmas.
Here are some highlights from the last 2 weeks:We started the time off with a weekend with the Peckenpaugh clan at the cottage. Only 23 of us were there (not everyone) but we had a blast doing our white elephant exchange and hot tubbing in the snow. Here is a photo of aunt Becca trying to get Annika to play with some snow.
We then headed back to Kalamazoo to spend Christmas with the Johnsons. Branden's sisters Julie and Jody were in town from Minnesota and North Carolina. It was fun to have the Johnson siblings together:
Branden, Annika and I had so much fun meeting Jody and Rick's little boy Will Turek for the first time. It took us a couple of tries, but we ended up getting a few good photos of cousins Annika and Will together for their first Christmas:
It is tradition in the Peckenpaugh family to get matching PJ's for Christmas, so this year Branden, Annika and myself had matching red duds (bum flap and all) that were hits wherever they showed up:
All of the Johnson girls also got matching "We Believe" shirts for Christmas morning:
After Christmas I was able to get together for lunch with some of my dearest friends from Hope. Our time together this year was dramatically different from last year - complete with 3 babies with toys strewn everywhere. Here is a photo of Annika playing with her boyfriend George:
After a few days with the Johnsons that went by way too quickly, we ventured back to the cottage in Sawyer, MI to do Christmas with my family (that also went by way too quickly):
Annika received her first stocking - beautifully knit by her Nana - and had a wonderful time opening up more gifts and spending time with Aunt Becca, Uncle Chris and Aunt Jacki.
We love taking walks while we are at the cottage regardless of the weather. My mom and I enjoyed a gorgeous snowy walk with the dogs that made us imagine we were vacationing in the Rockies.
We also got an unexpectedly sunny day that alowed us to venture down to the beach for a unseasonable January stroll:
Lastly, we finished out our vacation with New Years in Naperville. While there we visited my grandparents in Hinsdale for dinner and I had the chance to do lunch with my dear friends Allison and Stacy. Stacy and her husband Jon were back in town from their recent move to Santa Barbara and it was so nice to have the opportunity to catch up and hear about their adventures in their new town.
After all of the fun we had, today it was back to work and back to our normal schedule. We are thankful for all that 2009 brought and are hopeful for a wonderful year ahead.
Merry Christmas and Happy 2010
Annika won her dad's heart tonight by donning her Vikings football jersey and helping him root on one of his favorite teams. Though she doesn't know it yet, she doesn't have much of a choice about becoming a Minnesota sports fan.
January is finding a way to creep by without much notice. I think that after the rush of the holidays, we've been more than content just hanging out and enjoying each other. As a result, I suppose there hasn't been anything momentous enough to inspire me to post something to the blog. After a bug put the idea in my ear that I needed to post something new, I started thinking about what I could share. In the process, I reflected on how special even the most mundane of moments are.
Today we had lunch at the Johnson's to celebrate Jenna's birthday. We enjoyed ribs, cupcakes, ice cream and Mario Cart on the Wii and Annika entertained herself with one of her favorite past-times at Grammy and Grampy Johnson's: pulling the magnets off their fridge.
The first blizzard of the season created an opportunity for Branden, Annika and I to have a week-day home together. Because of the REALLY cold temperatures we didn't let Annika get her first experience in the snow, but she had a lot of fun pressing her nose against the door and looking at all of the white stuff falling from the sky. Some people groan when snow is forcasted, but it's part of the reason we love living in Michigan.
