Continuing to check off our Texas food boxes, we stopped for delicious BBQ on our way to the ranch. Owen is a rib man, apparently, but I'm sad that neither kid likes BBQ sides! Something to keep working on, I suppose.
The main purpose of this visit was family time, and we definitely got some good time together! We hadn't seen our Texas family since last Thanksgiving. 12 people most of the time, and even 14 for Christmas dinner when my "adoptive grandparents", the DeZavalas arrived! Plus another 4 from NJ's family for an evening visit. Full house, for sure.
The kids were both enamored by their beautiful, older cousins, Hannah and Katie. They were hardly left alone while they were at the ranch and were gracious in playing, reading, and cuddling with their little cousins.
Of course there were lots of walks all over the ranch, even in cooler, cloudy, and damp conditions. Owen led the way in trail clearing efforts. We've trained him well!
A fun new addition to the trails this trip were some trail signs naming the paths after all the grandkids. Owen and Hadley loved that theirs were very close to the house and easy to find! Owen was also glad to be in "shorts weather", at least according to him.
There's nothing like being on a Texas ranch! We just had to live up to all the stereotypes: oil, cattle, 4-wheeling, and shooting stuff.
Owen got to fulfill another dream by shooting a rifle (pellet gun)! He was on cloud nine! Uncle Michael said he was a natural, and Owen hit his first 3 out of 4 shots right on target. We also discovered that he was cross-dominant in that he's right-handed, but left-eyed, so he might need to practice learning to shoot with his left hand.
Of course, we were there for Christmas, which was wonderful, too, starting with a Christmas Eve children's pageant and cantata and full-family lunch out after church.
Christmas morning started out at a reasonable 7:30am. The kids hadn't even peeked in their stockings yet, but Santa found us out at the ranch! Woohoo!
Gift opening with 12 people was a sort of controlled chaos that was over pretty quickly. Apologies in advance if we miss a gift in your Thank You cards. Ha!
Santa came through with Owen's ATV, albeit a little smaller than he had in mind, and he RC-ed it all over the sand, grass, and sticks for the remainder of our stay. Another hit gift was the marshmallow bow and arrow, but who needs marshmallows? Pretend play is just as fun! Which reminds me that more than one relative was surprised by Owen's vigorous Hot Wheel car engine noises.
Hadley got a Moana doll and some art supplies. She enjoyed being the older kid for once, and helping with Aunt NJ's grandkids, Adeline and Easton. It was so nice to spend the holidays with our extended family this year!!
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