January Days

Graydon has the best curls.

But he finally came to a point when his hair was becoming just a little too much for him. His main complaint was that it was itching his neck. So, after more than a year of growing it out, Graydon asked for a hair cut. Here is the before. Incidentally, he didn't realize how long the back was until he saw this this side view. He just assumed the back was the same length as the front!  

And After! 

This haircut made him look a little older to me and, surprisingly, a little taller! Even though it is shorter, he still has great hair! 

And here is the pile of hair that was cut off! Andy purchased a new pool table light with some of his Christmas money and Graydon helped install it. I came home one day to see the boys playing some one-on-one basketball. It always fills my heart with joy to see them playing together, and especially doing something active without being told. January is my self-declared month of hibernation. On days when I come home and don't have to leave again, I get into my pajamas right away and allow myself to move a little slower with zero guilt. This feels so good and helps me enjoy January more. We had a gallon-size ziploc bag filled with old crayons. I've had this project in mind for literally years and I finally did it. I turned all those individual crayons into something fun that I can give to students at school. Bella has a couple games left in her basketball season. Another mom takes photos at every game, so I got a few of Bella from her. I'm pretty sure she just took a shot in this photo and was fouled by that player on the opposing team. On January 12, 2021, another newphew joined our family! Meet Bennett Hassler! Welcome to the family, Bennett! And I'll end with a few fun selfies with Curtis.

Christmas in Wisconsin

We headed up to WI after church on December 27th and stayed at my sister's house this time. Graydon couldn't wait to receive his gift from Auntie Mary - new juggling clubs! These are a professional quality and definitely an upgrade from the ones he was using previously. Our family Christmas gathering was at Jodi and Aaron's house - the former Benetti Homestead.

This guy was excited to have a green Christmas!

Hot Chocolate Bombs for the kids! Curtis had an apple watch on his Christmas list, so several of the aunts and uncles went in together to get this for him! We celebrated Graydon's birthday a few days early. He's so fortunate that he gets to celebrate with both sides of the family every year. He's not a huge cake fan, so he chose birthday donuts. Cheers to the birthday boy! This is the face of the boy who just opened a couple of cards with at LOT of money in them! For a boy who came into Christmas/Birthday with just fifty cents to his name, he was feeling pretty good here. Snuggles with Walter and Moose. They about doubled in size since we last saw them in October! Just before our trip up, my sister Lori went back to work after her maternity leave. As a result, she wasn't able to join us for any of the festivities. So, on our way to visit the Kilpses in Verona, we stopped to see her, her husband, and of course our sweet nephew, Branko. We can't get enough of him! It's been a while since we've had a good snowfall in Indiana, but we got snow on a couple occasions while up in Wisconsin, which meant that the kids got to do a lot of sledding! This is the look of a cold and tired boy. Bella brought her Watchyamouth game. It is so funny! Time to celebrate Graydon's (actual) birthday! More birthday donuts! We all watched his birthday slideshow. He received a new pool cue from Gaga, Papa, and the Meades and was excited to give it a try right away. All of us stayed up until 11pm to watch the ball fall from New York, but a few of us fizzled out to officially ring the new year in Wisconsin. Still, it's always exciting to say hello to a brand new year. We celebrated the Kilps Christmas on New Year's Day, but first we all just kind of chilled. Our kids were out in the snow as much as possible - just in case this was the only chance they'd get this winter. Apparently, this was the only photo I took from our gift opening. Maybe my phone battery died? Kilps Family 2021 Before we knew it, it was time to head back home to Indiana. The Wisconsin portion of the drive was beautiful. It had snowed again the day before and froze. The trees were gorgeous! Moving cell phone photos don't really do it justice.