Wooden Toys

My Grandpa has a woodworking hobby, and is really good at it.  He made some toy trains for all his great grandsons, which turned out awesome!  I love wooden toys, and the fact that these were made with love make them really special.  Here is my Grandpa and Isaac with the wooden trains:

He also gave the girls some beautiful jewelry boxes that he made.  They love them!

Old Fashioned Lamp & Phone at Nana's house

As is tradition at Nana's house, the girls got to blow out the kerosene lamp each night before they went to bed.  This tradition dates back to when I was their age and would do this with Nana every time I had a sleepover at her house.

They were also interested in the old phone that she has in her house, and she enjoyed telling them how it would have been used:

My Family - Group Shots

Of course you have to get the group shots!  My family hasn't all been together in 2 1/2 years.  I loved every minute of being all together in Calgary in January.  Unfortunately Mike was only able to come for 3 days since it was the first week of the semester and he had to stay to teach, so he is missing from these pictures.

 My parents with their 5 grandkids

Erin (4), Isaac (8 months), Isaiah (12 months), Gavin (19 months), Elaina(6)

 My parents with Elaina, Gavin & Erin

 Nana & Papa with their Great Grandkids

(Erin, Isaiah, Gavin, Isaac, Elaina)

 My Mom with my 3 kiddos

Nana with her 5 Great-grandchildren

(Isaiah, Erin, Isaac, Gavin, Elaina)

 Grandpa & Deanna with their 7 grandkids

 Grandpa & Deanna with their Grandchildren and Great Grandchildren

Our big group - Grandpa Derry's posterity

Messy Faces!

These little faces are so cute....but they are soooooo messy!  

 

Hanging Out in Calgary

  We had a lot of fun hanging out at Nana & Papa's house all week while we were in Calgary.  It was crowded.  Really, really crowded.  We didn't all sleep there, but we pretty much all congregated there every day.  Nana and Papa were incredible to host all of us.  My cousins, the Nilssons, were so helpful too.  Although we couldn't go out and do much, it was just fun to all be together...even in such close quarters!

So, what do you do with 5 kids and a whole bunch of adults crammed into one house when it's too cold to go outside and play?  You make your own fun...

My cousin, Megan, building blocks with the girls

Elaina reading Ramona with my Nana

Reading Junie B Jones

 

 Playing Candyland

 Gavin was lots of help!

Erin and Gavin doing a puzzle - can you tell how much help Gavin was?

Watching Charlotte's Web

 

Playing Dominoes...with ring pops!

Isaac figured it was more fun to just eat the pieces!

Elaina is teaching Grandpa Ducky how to play video games

The girls made Valentine's crafts with Nanny M

Isaac tried to participate, but as usual, had more fun getting into everything instead

lots of hanging out and just chatting

Papa, Megan, Trevor, Andrea

Big thanks to my Nana and Papa for allowing us to invade their home for a week.  And big thanks to my parents for bringing us all together.  It was such a wonderful week to just be together and hang out...and a bit (or a lot) of wedding stuff too!

Cousins

I loved seeing the 5 little cousins all play together.  The last time we were all together, Elaina and Erin were my parents' only grandkids.  They certainly loved getting all the attention back then, but now it is even more fun when there are 3 (almost 4!) more little boys to share the attention.  The girls have become the nurturers/ring leaders/babysitters and they love taking care of their younger brother & cousins.  The boys think Elaina & Erin are hilarious and love to try to keep up with them and imitate what they do.  Watching the dynamics of all 5 kids together is so much fun.

Getting into mischief: Erin, Gavin & Elaina

These three were playing some fun game.  I'm not sure what it was but they kept putting their heads down and laughing.  I think the girls were laughing at Gavin copying them, and Gavin was just laughing because they were laughing, and because they are so much fun to imitate.  It was hilarious to watch!

My Mom with 4/5 of her grandkids

Jen playing with Gavin & Isaac

Trying to share...well, not so much

One day the boys were "playing" in the living room together.  It consisted of Gavin and Isaiah chasing each other around the living room and Isaac sitting in the middle, watching them run circles around him.  They were so cute playing together

 

Isaiah and Erin

Playing "Ring around the Rosy"

 

 Mary with Isaiah and Isaac

Gavin & Isaiah are 7 months apart

 Isaiah and Isaac are 4 months apart

 Fist bump?

The three boys.  Already best buds

Trying to get a boys picture with the boys: Gavin (19 months), Isaac (8 months), Isaiah (12 months), Gavin wasn't too excited about it. 

I think Isaac thinks that if he gave Gavin a toy it would make him feel better!