This is how we do it

Christmas, Cousins, and Cute baby!

Ronnies little sister Kristen recently had her 5th baby, and needless to say, she wasn't going anywhere for Christmas. So, we decided to bring the party to her. We flew in on Christmas Eve and knew from the moment we got there that we would have a hard time saying goodbye to this sweet family. We hadn't seen them in over a year so we were due for a little catching up. The cousins are as follows, Meg-7, Erika- 5, Czar- 4, Madison-4, Jerom-20mo., Beckham-6mo., and new baby Hyrum- 2 weeks. So we had 7 cousins, 7 years and under. It was a party indeed!

Christmas was wonderful, there was enough little kids to take care of Mary, Joseph, a shepherd, a wiseman, and a sheep. It was a fun time with paper ripping, smiles beaming and marshmallows flying. Ronnie got a marshmallow gun to fit in with the rest of the Smith kids (and dad) who also had nerf dart guns and ball guns. Madison enjoyed the retrieving of the marshmallows so that she could eat them.


We tried to help out Kristen as best we could by cleaning, fixing meals, and entertaining kids. We took them to a children's museum in Lincoln where you could do anything from milk a cow to paint your face, to ride in a rocket. It was a blast and very entertaining for the kids. Madison really liked the firefighter turnouts that probably doubled her weight when she put them on. We should have waited to put them on until she got up into the truck; it was a feat to get her into that truck with boots, a coat, and hat on. Also a hit with the girls was the stage where they could dress up and put on a show. We enjoyed running around the museum and watching them all explore together. By the way, that is Meg in the big red chair with Beckham, not Madison! They are definitely related!

We also took them to an arcade to have a little virtual fun. The favorites were: dance revolution, the horse racing, and motorcycle races.














And of course, the star of the week was baby Ethan Hyrum Smith. The newest member of the Smith/Chapman family. Unlike most of his brothers and sisters, he looks like the spitting image of his dad. It was fun to see the kids all together; there is a definite family resemblance. I think a few of us mistook Meg for Madison and vice versa.



Other highlights from the week included:

• Grandma playing steal the pile many times each night with all the kids
• Grandpa, Bethie, Uncle Ronnie and Auntie Jodee giving horsey rides to each child a few times a day
• going to see Charlotts Web with all the kids
• riding the indoor ferris wheel at the local sporting goods store
• getting pegged by either a flying dart, ball, or marshmallow

After returning to Las Vegas and driving home to California, we were greeted by my parents who had driven from Vegas up the coast and stayed with us for a few nights. It was so good to see them again and we are so thankful they were there, though they might not have been after having to help clean up Christmas decorations, luggage, and puking kids. Madison woke up New Years day throwing up. Ronnie had a race that morning so he had to leave midway through the second round of through up, but luckily Nana and Papa helped me out by watching Bex, running laundry upstairs, and comforting our sick little Madison. I was even able to get away that morning to see Ronnie cross the finish line. He ran a 10K in 52:30. We are really proud of him for how hard he has been working and are looking forward to next weekend when he runs his first half marathon in San Diego. Madison is even going to run a mile fun run the day before.

We had a fun new years eve/birthday party at my sister Kellee's house. She turned the big 30 and decided to make it a celebration with good food, friends, and fireworks. Happy Birthday Kell!

Things are starting to get back to normal, the kids are feeling better. Madison even went to her first day back at preschool, which she has been anticipating for days now. We feel very blessed to have been able to travel to see our family who mean so very much to us. We are so grateful for the safety that was bestowed upon us as we traveled; we didn't even have a plane delay in all of the bad weather that was going around. We hope you all had a great Holiday Season and are safely back at home. Happy New Year from San Francisco!

-Oh, and look at our little Bex, he is sitting up all by himself now!