Christmas at the Ranch

The three or so times that our entire family gathers together each year are some of the most anticipated weekends of the year for me.  And our holiday weekend in St. Clair over NYE did not disappoint!   Unfortunately Thom could not get off work to be with us, but everyone else was there - plus a couple of guests , Brian and his son, Daniel.    And as wonderful as it is for me to be able to see all my siblings, I am even happier when Jace and all of my nephews and niece get to spend time together for a few days.  I know they will look back and have some wonderful memories of spending holidays with their cousins each year.

The weather this year was unseasonably warm - very similar to last Christmas.  We were able to spend some time outside over the three days we were there:

Out by the horses

Another highlight of the weekend - for the guys- was a little target practice down by the barn.  My nephew Landon placed first in the state 4H last year in air rifles, so he is accustomed to shooting guns.  In addition, he and Payton went deer hunting with their dad this year.   Jace has been anxiously asking for the last several months to do the same - learn how to shoot, and perhaps go hunting with them next year.   Brian is in law enforcement, and has spent most of his career in SWAT before moving into more of an administrative role; so he is teaching Jace how to shoot a BB gun and air soft gun, and all about the safety components of using weapons.  He brought one of his big guns to St. Clair, and let the guys all try it out - both the big guys, as well as Jace and Landon.

Jace taking aim

The little guys enjoyed some time outside as well, exploring in Grandpa Nick's barn and sitting up high on the tractors:

We decided to let the kids open presents on Saturday afternoon this year, rather than waiting until after family dinner on Saturday night.   It was a smart move - not only did we put a halt to the questions about when we'd be opening gifts, but it also gave the kids extra time to play with all of their new tthings.  And in Eva's case, it gave her more time to put on ALL of the Hello Kitty clothes that she received from her doting aunts!

The kids played with their toys most of the day, until we gathered to eat dinner that evening.

Me & one of my many handsome BILs, Luke

Mom and Grandpa

Gathering to say grace
(some of us more serious than others)

(Susan had to get her photo taken by Matt during dinner, since she has decided he looks just like STL Cards' pitcher, Chris Carpenter!)

We enjoyed our traditional holiday dinner, with 20+ people around the two tables, and plenty of yummy food.   This year Mom decided that it was too much work to drag out all the china like she usually does.   We all thought that was just fine, and enjoyed our meal just as much on the Chinet plates - plus the clean-up was much quicker.     After dinner the adults enjoyed some dessert and coffee, sitting around the table and talking.  On the other hand, Jace, Landon and Payton finished their meals as quickly as possible so they could hurry up and get back to playing X-box.

After dinner was finished and cleaned up, I headed to the music room to play some on the piano, and all of the little ones quickly joined me.   One of our favorite things to do each holiday is gather around the piano and sing (yes, we are the Cleaver family, what of it!?) and often times Rob will get out his guitar and join me.

A little later the adults finished opening our presents, and then we all headed out to the family room to get some family pics... we have decided that my next class will have to be Photoshop, so I can figure out how to get Thomas in a photo with all the siblings, since we can't get him home with us!  (Love you, Thom!)

Goofing around!

The Zartman boys

It was a pretty quiet New Year's Eve, with only Susan, Ron, me, Brian and the big boys (Jace and cousins) up to ring the new year in and watch the ball drop in Times Square - although Luke and Tara headed over to go to bed about 11:45PM, and made sure we knew that they were awake when the clock struck midnight - were just climbing into bed after brushing their teeth, etc!

Looking forward to a wonderful 2012, and can't wait unitil we're all together again for Easter in a few short months!

Christmas in PB

My Christmas Eve/Day was spent in Poplar Bluff this year - the first time I've been away from Springfield on Christmas in many years.   Since our Gasaway family Christmas is always the weekend before or after the actual holiday, I always let Jace's dad have his preference of when Jace is with him on Christmas.  That way they can make all of their visits to Jace's family on his dad's side.  One of the traditions that Dave and I had started in recent years was to take the boat out on the lake - always beautiful to be out on the water, in the warm enclosed boat cabin, enjoying the peaceful lake on Christmas Day.  This year, knowing that I wouldn't want to be alone on Christmas, I decided that I would make plans to spend the weekend with my grandparents and parents, in Poplar Bluff.   And it was SUCH a nice way to spend the holiday!

Brian made the trip with me on Friday morning, but drove separately so he could head home on Saturday afternoon for his family's Christmas that evening.  We arrived early Friday afternoon, and just relaxed and visited with my grandparents and parents, before we all headed to dinner at a local Italian restaurant.

Later that evening, we headed over to my cousin Krista and David's home for a bit, to visit with them.  They were getting ready for their big annual Christmas Eve party - but since Brian would be gone by Saturday night, I wanted him to meet them while he was still there.  On Saturday morning I got up bright and early to see if Grandpa wanted to have an early breakfast at his favorite hangout, Myrtle's.

Grandpa and me - ready for breakfast

Grandpa is a well known community member in Poplar Bluff and at Myrtle's, a cafe in historic downtown Poplar Bluff.  I've enjoyed going with him a few times over the last several years  (although he loves to rib me and say that it is mainly because one of  the younger law enforcement guys once thought I was about 22 or 23, wearing my baseball cap one morning.  I was 35+ at the time, so yes, I did enjoy that compliment!)  But it really is just enjoyable to go with Grandpa and get to see him interact with all of the folks he knows in Poplar Bluff.  He grew up in PB, and then later came back in the 90s to serve as city manager for several years.  I'm very proud to be his granddaughter, and just like to spend time with him around others.   My dad and Brian joined us for breakfast at Myrtle's, and then we went home and picked up Mom and Grandmother to head to second breakfast at Perkins.

Before Brian left on Saturday we looked around Poplar Bluff a bit, while picking up the Saturday newspaper for Grandpa.  I thought to grab my camera as we headed out the door, but didn't bring my long lens or my tripod - will remember that next time, never know when or where you might find a good photo.  Brian spotted an old railroad bridge, and we headed down to park closer to it so I could take some photos.

When we got home Grandpa said he had some other buildings and landmarks that he would like me to get some photos next time I visited..   I  enjoyed a quiet afternoon at my grandparents, and then we headed  to their church for the candlelight Christmas Eve service.  

Hanging with my cousins

The Christmas Eve gathering afterwards at Krista and David's was lots of fun - I got to catch up with them, and also my cousin Kyle.  I had seen them all when Grandpa had his heart surgery, but it was good to see them in much better circumstances.  There were also some relatives on their side of the family that I hadn't seen in years.   And Dad, Mom and my grandparents all stayed for quite awhile and enjoyed the festivities - although Dad was ready to go to bed towards the end of the evening, and not enamored with my efforts to capture our photo on my phone!

Me & my dad - say cheese!

Sunday morning Grandmother fixed us breakfast, with some yummy cinnamon rolls, apple strudel, fruit, orange juice and of course, coffee.  I always bring my own coffee to brew, and this weekend was no exception - they know I want to enjoy my Sinless Pastry even when I'm not at home!  We sat around the table in our comfy clothes and visited for awhile and then I leisurely packed to hit the road and head home to Springfield.

It was a great weekend, and I was so glad to be able to spend the holiday with them - Grandpa and Grandmother always join us for Gasaway Christmas in St. Clair, but it was nice to be with them at their home and spend some time catching up.  Grandmother said we should make it a tradition, and I may just do that, if they'll have me!

Now I'm finishing up this post while in the car with Jace, Brian and Brian's 3-year-old Daniel, headed to our family Christmas in St. Clair.  All of us siblings have been texting back and forth this morning, getting each other's ETA at the ranch.  The weather is gorgeous, and all of the nephews (and niece) will be able to enjoy spending time inside AND outside - pretty nice plan, for late December.