Hangin in Colorado

A few days after Christmas we packed our bags and headed to Colorado Springs to rendezvous with a large number of the Martin clan. Tim drove out from Indiana and Shaun came with Allen and Lisa from Arizona. We all gathered in Donny's beautiful new home. The last time we had come for a visit to the Springs was over Labor Day weekend, and we got to tour the house before Donny and Ellie moved in. They are now settled in to their first house, and what a house it is!

I must say, each time we gather with Theo's siblings, especially lately, I am always struck by the contrast of gathering with the Ross crowd. On the Martin side, our kids are the "older" cousins. All of Theo's siblings started their families pretty much around the time we were done having kids. It is fun to see our boys take care of the little ones. I admit, it is also nice to be the one with kids that don't throw tantrums anymore, need diaper changes, naps, or any of that other good stuff. We are loving the stage that our boys are in!

One of the most challenging parts of the visit was the weather. Colorado in the winter can be chilly, and we were not disappointed in that regard. The kids had to stay in most of the time, and with such a large bunch of excited boys, it was not always easy to keep them entertained. Lots of good food and our boys' willingness to wrangle the rascals was awesome.

 

We had a lot of fun shopping for Christmas gifts for all the little cousins. We decided to get them all masks of different superheroes. Here I am modeling the Hulk in Target. Haha.

 

 

Of course, the boys (big and little) can only take being cooped up in the house for so long. One afternoon, they bundled up and venured on a hillside trail in the middle of town.

Here is cute little Max, Tim and Anne's youngest. He is full of energy and such a happy go lucky guy!

 

Here are Symond (Tim and Anne's older son), Rex, and Josh (Donny and Ellie's son). These three did a lot of playing together and just about wore me out reading book after book to them.

 

And here are most of the boys hamming it up for a group picture. I think this may have broke down in to a big wrestling match shortly after this was taken.

 

 

Here are all of the boys and their wives, from left to right: Tim and Anne, Donny and Ellie, Shaun and Melissa, and Theo and I.

 

 

We gathered in for another group shot to include cute little Isabelle, the only girl in the crew, and Drake. Poor Drake got a stomach bug while we were there and spent about a day and a half just laying on the couch feeling pretty crummy.

 

 

Isabelle tried on Theo's new boots, and she did not want to take them off!

 

Finally, the "Brudders". These guys sure enjoy hanging out, and I am glad we were able to really spend some time together. With New Years approaching as well as the promise of a big winter storm, we all headed home the day before 2013 was too arrive. Thanks Donny and Ellie for hosting! See you soon.