Our family second Christmas.

All new traditions have to start somewhere and our family started this nine years ago when Bob was only two and Fifi five. DD1 has just moved into her own house earlier in the year after living with us for nine months, and she decided that she wanted her first Christmas in her own house with just the three of them, so we respected that. DD2 and I decide that we would give them their presents from us on Boxing Day, and so our new family tradition was born. It has evolved over the years but the theme has always remained the same - to let us watch the children open the presents our side of the family buy.

Sadly we now live in a much smaller house than we did and the family keeps getting bigger with all the children having partners and having gone from two grandchildren coming to six of them here this year. So this year we took it back to its roots and had just us and DD3 and her partner, as they have no children, as we sent all the parents away as the children have more fun without them. 

So DD3 and I went down to pick up the local five and just as we were getting back DD2, SIL2 and Ziggy were arriving. They came in and settled Ziggy down, as an only child five noisy cousins running around excitedly can be a bit overwhelming considering she is not walking yet. So Ziggy was handed to granddad and we were left to get on with the day. 

Firstly Minky and Dinky started pulling the presents out from under the table, guessing what name was on them and handing them to anybody. They both recognise their own name now but of the others, not bad for just four. 

So  much excitement and paper tearing led to a pile of presents with none of them really knowing whose was whose or who anything had come from. Ziggy sat up with Granddad and he helped her open her presents.

After the paper was cleared up and there was room to move I sent Minky round the back of the couch on the pretext of bringing me the picnic mat we have. Underneath it was some of the Brio train track set up for them. No room to set it all up so I decided the gap behind the couch was a good place to set some up so they could play with it on the day. 

the opening begins. Minky pulled the parcels out from under the table 

Granddad helped her unwrap 

aaahhh cuddles 

Ziggy was quite good at dismantling the train track 

We played with the younger children and their games with the older ones joining in, Dinky was really good at the Disney pairs game I got her.

Ziggy and Spud colouring

the train set was set up behind the couch

    

After some playing I spread out a picnic for them, they all love a picnic and thought it was better to let them help themselves than try and make set food for them. I could not believe how much Ziggy eat, much more than she normally gets fed. 

a free for all picnic

As a surprise for them I had taken two pictures off of Facebook that had been put up on Christmas Day and used a voucher I won from Intercake and made a collage and got a cake printed with all of them on it. The older four were rather excited by it. 

Minky Bob and Ziggy with the cake 

the cake we got printed 

After cake we walked the younger children back down the road to drop them off to spend some time playing games with the older two. Back up the road and we played Bob's game first as DD2 had returned and had to leave the dog in the car until after he left as he is to allergic to the dog to be in the same house. The weather was approx -5 and so not fair to leave the dog for to long. Bob went down the road and we played a few games with Fifi and DD2.

We spent some time then playing with Bop it, DD3 got this for her Christmas. Have to say I wasn't very good, think I scored 45.

SIL2 playing Bop it

When DD3 and SIL3 went home DD2 decided to bath Ziggy. As we don't have a bath this is in the portable baby bath with a large plastic sheet and a towel under, she is just to big for the kitchen sink now. Had us all laughing as she climbed in and out of the bath with her clothes on pretending to go splash splash.