What a fun "after Christmas" day!

Yesterday was such a nice, fun, relaxing day!

We started with an earlier morning than anyone was really wanting, but after the kids were up they just played while I laid down on the couch, Mike on the floor, and the came up to me or sat on him and just hung out for a little while. Mike was nice enough to get them all breakfast while I laid down for a little longer- Lynae had kept me up quite a bit the night before.

Around 9:30 Mike and Kristopher took showers and I got the other 4 kids dressed and shoes on and we headed out for a quick visit to Target. Though we were going for a few things for Mike's Kenya trip, a birthday gift for Brianna, and to look at and price another thing or two, we also took a quick glance through the after-Christmas sales :) We did find some more of the big foam mats for our playroom that were 30% off which was worth it since we'd looked at them several times and this saved us almost $15.

We'd brought bottles and such, but the man that packed the cooler forgot baby food... so we ended up going back home instead of going out to a quick lunch and to another store or two. So when we did get home we had a quick lunch and put Micah and Brianna down for naps. Brianna has learned how to get out of bed at nap time though she'll sit in there for a little while before gracing us with her presence :) We all had a little rest time, and Mike built the new 'cube' that I got for Christmas to add to the one we have by the front door. Now we have double the storage there, which is great!!

After all the kids were up and we'd finished up the things in the house that we were working on I threw dinner in the oven with an auto-shut-off timer and we went outside with all the kids. Lynae hung out in the stroller, Micah played with a foot-scoot little ride-on that he got last year for Christmas, Kristopher rode his bike, and Brianna and Emma both tried out their new tricycles! The girls both really really enjoyed their bikes! One of the bikes has a handle in the back that steers the front wheel as well. The petals on it will 'coast' like an adult bike so when the child is pushed their feet don't go around and around or get smacked in the legs :) The other is a 'regular' tricycle but both have a back to their seats and the second trike is built a little larger and fits Emma great- likely will for a while!

When we came inside we were greeted with a sweet aroma of cooked chicken with artichoke hearts and garlic. I popped in some veggies that steam in the bag and some garlic bread and we had a delicious dinner. Then we got all the kids baths and put the 4 little ones in footed sleepers and Kristopher put pajamas on and we all loaded up in the car!

We decided that since this year the days going up to Christmas were so rushed and we'd missed a few things we really enjoy doing, that we would spend the evening looking at Christmas lights!

So we put five little ones in the car, we drove through McDonald's and picked up a large french fry to split between us and some hot chocolate for Mike and I, and we drove- well after everyone's bedtime- all around town to see the lights :).

By the time we got home everyone was asleep but we'd already done medicine and brushed teeth, so we just carried them in and straight to their beds.

What a fun, relaxing, and sweet day we had with our kids! (and yes, I have a few pic's to share... they're somewhere with the Christmas photos...)