It's All About Family---Part 1

And I don't just mean at Christmas time. When we get a chance to be together, we definitely make the most of it!

We left on Friday to spend a few days with Sandy and family. Jordan and Morgan went with us this year. That definitely made it more fun for Mitchell, Victoria and Elizabeth. Sandy goes out of her way to make everything fun and festive.

When we arrive, Sandy always has to fight the horrible, congested, airport traffic---always. It doesn't seem to matter what time of year it is. The Charlotte airport is just terrible. We have learned a little trick that helps some, but not much---after getting our luggage, we go upstairs to "departing flights" and get picked up out there. It's a little better that way.

When we got home, Greg had Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos ready for dinner. Delish! We spent the rest of the evening catching up. I wasn't feeling all that great, so I went to bed around 10:30. They got new mattresses for Mitchell's bed which required this:

Yes, Greg had to put a step stool next to the bed because it's so tall! Because of this:

 He's so huge! Actually, I don't usually like to stand next to tall people---makes me look shorter and chubbier! After all, I am a whopping 5' 2"! I used to be 5' 3" but that's my new height from my doctor visit last week. I guess the weight it pulling me down!

His crutches are just about as tall as me!

On Saturday, we had a bit of a rocky start. The "kids" stayed up until 5 a.m. so were slow to get ready. Sandy had made plans for us to do the Holiday Escape Room. I was really excited because although they had done an escape room with Stephanie, Nicky and Mindy when they were in town, this was a first for Butch and I.

So yes, we made it out, but it wasn't because of me! I'm much more of a methodical thinker. It was a chaotic, random thing with everybody running around looking at everything and trying to find clues. Don't get me wrong, it was a lot of fun, but I was of no help. I can't see a big picture with random things. I need: first you do this, then this and next this! We had a great time.

After, we went to a new place for lunch called J.J. Red Hots.

They had every type of hot dog and topping you can imagine.

We spent the afternoon resting, watching football and playing games. We kicked off our evening with happy hour. Sandy planned White Christmas Cosmos. I'm sorry I didn't get a picture. Not only were they tasty, they looked pretty with frozen cranberries floating on top.

We had a crab leg dinner with twice baked potatoes, green bean casserole, strawberry pretzel salad and parmesan puffs. It was all delicious. She had her mascarpone strawberry cupcakes for dessert.

That lead to gift opening.

Their tree is beautiful. Sandy even surprised Jordan and Morgan with gifts. They were thrilled! We all received lots of fun surprises. Probably the most unusual gift was a plastic beaded bracelet that Butch got.

It represents pounds of plastic removed from the ocean! That plastic is used to make the beads. What a perfect gift for a guy who lives to recycle. He thinks of the environment all the time and is committed to living as green as possible.

After gifts, we played more games and ended up having a late night.

Part 2 tomorrow!