Christmas Travels to Upland and Aurora

Samantha: 103 Months, Week 2
Aedan: 69 Months, Week 4
Owen: 27 Months, Week 2

Our first night in Upland was good. Since we were the only ones in the house at that point, Samantha and Aedan shared Ben's old room, Owen slept in the play room, and Ben and I had Jeni's old room to ourselves. The kids are really comfortable and Ema and Papa's house, so we don't have much trouble getting everyone to sleep.

On Sunday morning, Ema and Papa had a special Christmas brunch with their Sunday School class, and families were welcome, so we got ready for church and went there to eat. The kids were pretty hungry having to wait awhile to eat breakfast, but they were pleased with the smorgasbord of food that was brought by people in the Sunday School class. It was fun going there and bringing our kids, and it was just another reason we were thankful to just have our three kids instead of our two extra new ones as well. It was one of those times where you don't realize how well-behaved your kids are, until you have children from hard places, that are not your kids. They would have never been able to handle themselves at a brunch like that where they had to sit quietly and respectfully, take their turns getting food, and listen to the adults while they talked. I looked around at how our kids were behaving and interacting with the adults around them, and I felt proud. It was also nice to be surrounded by adults who knew a lot of our story, as Ben's parents have shared various prayer requests with them over the years. They asked thoughtful, genuine, and considerate questions about our journey as foster parents, it was a wonderful brunch to be a part of, and I'm glad we went.

After eating breakfast we went over to the church building. For some reason Aedan was very resistant to going into his room for church. Samantha and Owen walked right in with no problem, but Aedan felt very nervous about not knowing anyone, so much so that he just stood there refusing to move. Ema was the one trying to drop him off, but he was not budging, so I had to go back down and talk to him as well. I didn't want to force him to do something that he wasn't comfortable with, so I told him he could come upstairs with us to the big church, but he would have to sit quietly and not play around. He decided he would rather do that, so he came upstairs to sit with us in church, and he did a pretty good job.

After church we went back to the house for lunch and a little bit of play time before nap time. Aunt Jeni brought their new little puppy along with them. His name was Buster, and Owen just loved him. He really loves animals, especially dogs and cats. It was really cute though because he couldn't say the name Buster, so kept calling him Mustard. He liked holding his leash and walking around with him.

Aedan was still recovering from his cold and cough of the previous week, and he was acting pretty tired and crabby, so we had him lay down and take a nap that Sunday afternoon. We always stay up a little bit later when we are out of town, and this little boy always wakes up early, no matter what, so his little body needed some extra sleep. I laid down with him to make sure he was sleeping, and he got all cuddled up next to me under the covers and fell asleep very quickly. I enjoyed laying there and watching him sleep for awhile.

We never have any really big plans when we are in Upland, which is perfectly fine with me. On Monday morning we decided to head over to the gym on Taylor's campus to run around, play, and get some energy out. The kids played soccer, walked (or ran) around the track with Ema and Papa, and even tried their hand at badminton at the end. It was a great way to spend our morning in an active way, out of the house, and doing something where we all got to spend time having fun together. Here are some pictures and videos from our morning.

That afternoon we actually had Aedan lay down and take a nap again, as well as Owen, just because he was acting grumpy and reacting to situations like he was overtired. I don't know if he was still recovering his energy from his cold the week before or what, but we wanted him to be feeling better and have more fun after getting some rest. The wonderful thing about Aedan is that he has never really been resistant to napping. He pretty willingly goes to sleep, and a lot of times we have to wake him up so he doesn't end up sleeping for too long.

The afternoon was spent with the cousins having a blast playing together. Samantha declared that it was a tradition to act out the Christmas story from the Bible, so they spent quite a long time discussing parts, planning out scenes, choosing costumes, and practicing lines. Then, that evening after dinner, before we did our Toll family Christmas present opening time, the kids performed the Christmas story. It was fun to watch, and Samantha was very happy to be able to perform it for us. Aedan had more of a part while they were practicing, but I think he chickened out at the last minute and preferred to sit next to me and watch. Owen provided some nice, comic relief. :)

This part when Owen interrupts the scene, is ignored, and then whacks Samantha in the stomach and tries to push her over is my favorite part. She just laughs, smiles, and continues on with the play. Meanwhile, all the adults are cracking up. She takes a lot from her little brothers as the big sister!

After their performance was over, the kids took turns giving the family their presents. Aedan got Ema a special bracelet that said, "I love you, Grandma," and Samantha made a set of coasters for Aunt Jeni and Eddie.

Aedan got Papa a back scratcher.

Samantha made something special for Pla, using some of her fabric and sewing a pattern onto the fabric, as well as spelling Pla's name. She was really excited to give her homemade presents to people, but especially to Pla.

Samantha also made a set of coasters for Uncle Timmy and Aunt Pla.

Samantha got Ema and Papa each an ornament to hang on their tree.

After the kids were finished handing out their presents, they started opening presents of their own, which was very exciting. They had been waiting all day for this. Owen got some fun water pen coloring books from Aunt Jeni and family.

Aedan got a neat coloring book and a book teaching you how to draw dinosaurs. He has been very interested in coloring, drawing, and making crafts lately, so this was really perfect for him.

We got Blake a handheld game device and Alaina a set of books about dragons that Aunt Jeni said she would like.

Ema and Papa opened the present from our family which was an ornament with all of their grandkids' names on it, with Ema and Papa in the middle.

Here's a picture of Aunt Pla opening a present. She was a real trooper that night because she wasn't feeling well, and they had gotten up super early that morning to catch a plane from California to Indiana so that they could be with us all that night.

Owen also got this set of Mickey Mouse stacking/nesting blocks from Aunt Jeni and family. He loves Mickey Mouse right now, so that was perfect for him.

Aedan got this awesome super hero set from Uncle Timmy and Aunt Pla. He doesn't show much emotion, but he was very excited about getting this out and playing with it.

One of Samantha's main presents that she asked for this year was a camera. She has been very interested in taking her own pictures and videos when we go special places, and she was thrilled that Uncle Timmy and Aunt Pla got her an awesome little camera.

Uncle Timmy and Aunt Pla got Owen some really great play kitchen stuff, like a toaster set, a mixer set, and a coffee maker set. He really loves to watch us do things in the kitchen, so this was perfect for him as well.

Uncle Timmy thought it was hilarious that Owen knew that this was a coffee maker. We didn't tell him what it was, he just knew it. Is it because Ben and I drink too much coffee? That's a very likely possibility.

Samantha got a little game and a nice, new Cubs shirt from Aunt Jeni and family.

Aedan also got this awesome set of super hero action figures to go along with his building set. I never did find out who got this for him, but he loves super heroes, so this set is right up his alley.

This is what Samantha got for Alaina: a ring, a set of earrings, and a scrunchie she made with Ema's help.

Aedan also got this fun book of building paper airplanes with different designs that you fold up and can blow with a straw to make them fly.

Ema and Papa thought Samantha would really enjoy being able to pick out her own books, so they got her a Barnes and Noble gift card so she could go and pick out exactly what she would want. It's interesting that Samantha has now reached that stage where she is moving beyond toys and into more "big kid" things like a camera and gift cards.

To carry on with tradition, Ema and Papa got Owen a recordable storybook. Samantha and Aedan both have one, too, and Owen was really excited to look at his new book. It was fun to see him look back and forth between Ema and Papa as he heard their voices talking. These books will be treasured for years to come.

We always save the "biggest," most exciting, or most special present for last. And this year I was really pleased with the ideas Ema and Papa came up with for the kids. You could tell they really knew what they liked based on the ideas they came up with, and they were definitely things I wouldn't have thought of myself. Aedan got a transforming remote controlled Batmobile, which was totally awesome, and he couldn't wait to get it out and try it.

Owen's big present was a Paw Patrol Fire Truck with an extendable ladder and spaces for all the puppies to ride. This was a great present for him because he really enjoys playing with the Paw Patrol puppies that we got him for his birthday.

Samantha's special present was an embroidery kit. She has really taken to making things lately. She enjoys using her weaving loom that Ema got her, and she worked really hard on making handmade presents for as many people as she could for Christmas this year. Ema does embroidery, and Samantha has shown an interest in learning how to sew and do projects like that, so Ema put together this kit for her with needles, thread, a hoop, a design sheet, and everything she would need to get started in a little carrying case. She also got this really neat pillow with embroidery on it that I believe was from Ema's mom. Samantha thought that was really cool, and she loved that it was a picture of a horse. I love to see her enjoying crafts and learning these wonderful skills. She could teach me some things, as I never learned how to do things like this myself.

The next present was a little something that was the same for all the kids. DRONES! They were all charged and ready to go, and as you can see in the videos, the kids were having a blast making the drones fly all over the place.

It was a wonderful Christmas full of thoughtful gifts, lots of laughs, and much excitement from the children. We were glad we were able to celebrate all together, if even just for a few hours.

Tuesday was Christmas Eve, and since we celebrated with opening presents the night before, this day was spent with time enjoying the new presents. Owen and Aedan loved their new vehicles.

Aedan got his Lego set out first thing in the morning and built it all by himself. I included this picture, even though it's blurry, because it shows just how intently Aedan is working on his Lego set. He is so good at following directions and putting things like this together. In fact, lately he has remarked that he might be an engineer when he grows up.

That afternoon everyone was pretty tired from being up late the night before, and a little sad because Alaina was no longer there to play with, so Ema and Papa let Samantha and Aedan watch the movie "Prancer" while Owen took a nap. Ben and I took the chance to go on a date together since we knew it would be fine for Ema and Papa to watch our three kids. It's definitely been more difficult to go on dates since our two new little ones have been at our house. We decided to go see "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood" and then go out for lunch at a Mexican restaurant. It was fun to be able to go out and do this together, enjoying some much needed time without kids.

That evening, after eating an early dinner at the house, we went to Ema and Papa's church for their Christmas Eve service. Samantha was actually the first one to ask if they had one or not because she really wanted to go. It was a family service, so we all sat together, and everyone did pretty well, even though Aedan and Owen played musical chairs a little bit with who they wanted to sit by. At one point, Ema and Papa had both Aedan and Owen, so we got special time to sit with Samantha. We even got these cute pictures of us sitting together. Her hair looked so pretty back in two long braids, and she is looking so grown up in these pictures. It's pictures like these that I think give us a glimpse of what she's going to look like when she gets older.

I was even able to snap these cute pictures of Ema and Papa cuddling with Aedan and Owen during the service.

That evening the kids couldn't wait to get dressed in their matching pajamas they got for Christmas from Ema and Papa. I love these pictures of our three sweet, wonderful kiddos. We had such a good time with family in Upland, and we were gearing up for the second half of our trip in Chicago.

Wednesday was Christmas day, so we decided to hang out in Upland for the morning, got everything packed up in our car (which is always quite the challenge with all the extra presents we have at Christmas time), ate a quick lunch, and then we hit the road for the four hour drive to Chicago. Owen napped while we drove, woke up crying, and then ended up going back to sleep for awhile, which was good. It's amazing how quick a four hour drive feels after our long drives back and forth to the places we have lived over the last four years. We arrived at Aunt Christy's house before dinnertime, and the cousins were excited to play together. They have lots of fun toys at their house, and they all have gotten really good at playing with each other. We decided to stay at Aunt Christy's house this time, instead of a hotel, to see how that would work, so it was nice to not have to go back to a hotel and get ourselves set up again. The rest of the evening was spent with lots of play time for the kids, eating dinner together, and then getting all the bedrooms set up for sleep. It's a little difficult for our kids sometimes with the time change because it's an hour earlier there, meaning we eat meals and go to bed an hour (or more) later than usual, making for some pretty tired kids.

Thursday was our day for our Christmas celebration with my side of the family. My parents, brother, Grandma, and her husband, Don, came over to Christy's house so we could open presents, spend time together, and have our big Christmas meal.

We had time before lunch, so we decided it would be best to let the kids open their presents then so that way we could still have nap time for the younger boys, and time for the kids to play with their new toys and hang out during the afternoon.

Our kids passed out the presents they got for everyone. Aedan got Oliver a little green soccer ball, a scrunchie (made by Samantha) for Brielle, and a Grandpa coffee mug for Grandpa.

He got Grandma a little ring.

Next, it was Samantha's turn to give out her presents. She was really excited to give Brielle and Oliver the special blankets that she made for them. They really seemed to like them, and that made Samantha really happy and proud.

Samantha got Grandma a special Grandma bracelet.

Then, Grandpa and Grandma opened up the present from our family which was an Olive Garden gift card and special ornament that said Grandpa and Grandma, as well as the names of all of their grandchildren. I think they liked it (once they got it open)!

I don't have a video of it, and at this point I forgot, but I know Samantha also got something for Grandpa, and we got a set of weights for Aunt Christy to use with her daily workouts.

Samantha then opened up her present from Grandpa and Grandma. It was a paper talking about the Kiwico subscription they got for her where she will get a Tinker Crate sent to her each month with something she can build, put together, and play with. We did this for her a couple years ago for her birthday, but only kept it up for a few months, so she was really excited to have it again and to get it for a whole year this time. Even though she didn't get anything to play with or look at right then, she was old enough to understand what it meant.

Aedan got a big box of K'nex to build awesome creations with. It came with a direction book with ideas to make, but he could also make anything he wanted out of them. I figured with how much he likes to build with Legos, he would really enjoy building with these and challenging himself more.

Owen then opened a play mixer that he could use to bake alongside Daddy in the kitchen.

Aedan opened up a present that was a box of Super Heroes with weapons, even though he didn't know what was in the box right away.

Owen also got this set of fruit that came with a knife to cut the fruit in half. They were all stuck together with Velcro, making it easy for the play knife to separate the halves. He has really enjoyed playing with our kitchen in the basement and being out in the kitchen with us while we cook, so I thought these would be fun presents to suggest for him.

You can see in the background on the floor his new Baby Shark book that he got, and then to go along with the other kitchen items, he got a pop-up toaster set as well.

Samantha opened a present from Aunt Christy, that she wasn't sure what it was in this first video, but it was an art kit in a nice, wooden box with crayons, colored pencils, paints, and a special place to keep it all organized. This was something she really wanted and was excited about.

Here is Oliver opening up the stomp rocket that we got for him.

Aedan has also really enjoyed drawing, coloring, and making things lately, so I thought he would enjoy an art set as well. However, the one I picked for him is more basic and can also be propped up like an easel.

From Aunt Christy, Owen got a Lego Duplo set with Mickey and Minnie Mouse, which he was really excited about. He likes watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and enjoys the characters from that show.

Samantha then got a really cool pink scooter from Oliver for her American Girl dolls. That was an unexpected present that I didn't know about, but she was excited about it.

Aedan opened this cool scissors skills activity book.

Brielle then had a chance to open up the Easy Bake Oven we got for her from our family. She knew exactly what it was when she opened it.

Owen really likes books, and Aunt Christy got him the book "Where Do Steam Trains Sleep at Night?" since he likes his "Where do Diggers Sleep at Night?" book so much. I love how excited he was as soon as he opened it, and he immediately ran over to Grandpa so he could read it to him.

Next, Samantha got this awesome fireplace/Christmas tree set that Brielle picked out for her American Girl dolls. She loved it and really wanted to take it out and play with it, but I made her keep it in the box until we got back home so we wouldn't lost any of the pieces.

Brielle got Aedan this silly little snowman that repeats everything you say back to you. It is the perfect gift for Aedan who is so silly these days. I love this video because his little grin and red cheeks when he gets slightly embarrassed are just some of my favorite things about Aedan. He is such a handsome little boy with his striped shirt and new hair cut. I can't help but look at him and smile.

Owen got a Digger book that makes sounds from Aunt Christy, and again, he couldn't wait to climb right up into Grandpa's lap so he could read it to him.

Brielle also had one of the talking snowmen, so after present opening time was over, the two of them had a great time being silly with the snowmen, making them say silly things, and being very loud in the process. :)

After eating lunch and getting Oliver and Owen down for their naps, we let the big kids watch a movie so that way we could get a little calm and quiet in the house. I was able to play a card game with Christy, Grandma, Don, and Matt, and it was a pretty relaxing afternoon. Owen didn't nap as long as he should have, so here he is cuddling with Grandpa and catching the tail end of the movie with the other kids.

It's pretty adorable how much Owen likes to cuddle with people, and especially his affinity for Grandpa figures. They were just so cute cuddled up on the couch together that I had to snap a few pictures.

Since Uncle Matt wasn't there when we opened presents before lunch, the kids opened their presents from him that evening. He got Aedan the awesome Toy Story Lego set that he had been wanting.

He got Samantha (and really all the kids) the Frozen 2 soundtrack. They love listening to music in their room and have practically worn out the first Frozen soundtrack, as well as Moana and Samantha's CD from her Christmas play. They were excited to add this one in the mix since Samantha and Aedan loved the movie so much.

He got Owen a really neat Thomas the Train book with a wheel he could turn and lots of little buttons with music and sounds that go along with the book. That was another great present that he will enjoy looking at a lot.

Here's Aedan checking out the directions and people for his new Lego set. He didn't like that we told him he couldn't open it up and play with it until we got back home. We just didn't want to lose pieces and have to figure out how to transport a Lego set that was already built.

Samantha then opened up a couple more presents, one being a horse riding set for her American Girl dolls and the other being a second art set.

Everyone had a wonderful day celebrating Christmas with my side of the family. The kids got wonderful presents that they were very excited to play with once we got everything back home. It's always a crazy, busy loud day with a full house of adults and kids, but it's a fun time for everyone, and it's great to get all the cousins together and give everyone a chance to see family at this time of year.

On Friday we had plans to go to the Dupage Children's Museum, so we got all the kids up and ready that morning to head out. Here they all are eating breakfast together. It's very rare that they are all sitting nicely in the same place, so I took advantage of my chance to take a picture of all the cousins together. It's fun that they can have these memories together as they grow up.

We were able to use our children's museum membership from the Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia to get a discount at the museum, and the kids were very excited to get inside and start playing. Grandpa and Grandma were going to meet us there as well, and we told the kids we were going to stay together as much as possible so that we could keep an eye on everyone and so the adults could talk some while the kids played.

One of the first activities of the day was all the kids working together to fill this pyramid with cubes. It was great to see everyone working together and making a pretty great creation.

The kids then played in the light area with magna-tiles and other building materials that reflected or shone colors with the light. There was the dark room with the light wall you could write on, and this cool screen that responded to where your body was.

Samantha wanted to get a picture with all the kids sitting in this chair, but it was too small of a chair and Oliver was not interested in getting his picture taken that day.

After this we went back to the water and bubble area, where the kids had fun playing in the water and going inside this plastic bubble.

We then moved over the the section with things where you could use air to blow scarves, balls, windmills, and other items like that. At first Samantha was acting a little bored, and I remarked to Ben later that this was the first time I felt like Samantha is getting too old for a children's museum like this, and it made me sad to think of her growing up in that way. She had fun playing with and interacting with her younger cousins and siblings, but it wasn't the actual activities that were that exciting to her.

After playing in that section for awhile, we stopped to go to the cafeteria and eat lunch before going upstairs to see the special exhibit. They had a fun music section, as well as a place where you could build and race Lego vehicles. Owen sent his car down the ramp over and over again for a long time.

Aedan and I worked really hard building this tall tower with wooden blocks. He did a great job balancing the different levels, and he followed the museum rules of not building it higher than his head. He was very proud of it and wanted me to take his picture next to it.

We spent most of the morning there, and once it got to after 1:00, we decided that it was time to get back to Aunt Christy's house so the little boys could both take naps. It was a fun morning out, and all the kids had a great time playing, building, and being creative at the museum.

Saturday night we decided to order deep dish pizza from Lou Malnati's because I always crave deep dish pizza when in Chicago. It was fun to hang out with everyone one last night. Ben and I worked on getting all our stuff together and loading up the van so we would be ready to head out on Saturday morning. Packing up all the presents we get at Christmastime is always a struggle. We are grateful for the wonderful, generous gifts, but it certainly gives Ben a challenge when getting everything to fit in the car.

That night after getting the kids to bed, I met my friend, Melissa, at Starbucks that was halfway between where she was and where I was. It was wonderful to sit and talk with a friend that knows me so well, and to catch up on each other's lives in person. I know I say this all the time, but it never matters how much time passes, we just pick right back up again. She will be a lifetime friend of mine, and I'm so glad that we both make the effort to see each other anytime we are anywhere near one another. We also had plans to get our families together at her parents' house in the morning, but we knew it would be hard to really talk with all the commotion of having kids around, so this coffee date was perfect.

Saturday morning after eating breakfast, letting the cousins play together for awhile longer, and getting the last things packed up in the car, we left Aurora to go to Wheaton where we visited with Brad and Melissa and their two kids at her parents' house. The kids got along super great, playing imaginary games together in the front living room, even though they really didn't even have toys to play with. They ordered some yummy chicken for lunch, and then, even though we didn't want to, because we were having such a wonderful time talking and hanging out, we decided it was time to hit the road. We had about a four hour drive to the hotel we were staying at in Ohio, and we didn't want to get there too late.

Luckily, it was a pretty uneventful car ride. Owen took a nap, and we encouraged Samantha and Aedan to as well, but they were not up for it, so we just had them play quietly in the back seat on their Leap Pad/Kindle while he napped. The rest of the trip went well even though the kids were tired and weren't exactly thrilled about leaving family and making the the long 11 hour drive back home over the next two days. We had a great week away from home, seeing family and friends, celebrating Christmas twice, and just getting a break from the sometimes monotony of every day life and responsibilities, giving us a chance to just reconnect and spend time together as a family. It was wonderful.

(Blog about December 22-28, 2019)