The Texas LePage family is finally back in Texas. Boy, was Indiana ever cold! It didn't help that we got in to Indiana during the coldest part of the day - that few moments before the sun rises. Yes...we did not get into Indy until the very early morning hours. It was a long travel day. But our little ones did so well. We even got compliments from the people surrounding us in airports and airplanes as they all sat and waited the same wait we waited. We really did have a blessed week. My in-laws were blessed to have all their children and grandchildren home for the holidays. Can't you just feel the happiness this family radiates? 
I must note here, in case you couldn't already tell, that I was not the photographer in the above photos (or many of the following photos for that matter). My sister-in-law, Sara, has been blessed with this amazing gift of capturing the moment. She does an outstanding job and we always wait so eagerly to receive the disk of photos after one of our family gatherings.In fact, between her photos and the ones I managed to snap, I am kind of overwhelmed and not quite sure what to blog about! This is why I haven't posted until now. So, excuse me if this blog seems to be all over place or in any way....random.
So anyways, I was telling you before about our loooongg travel day. This was one of Lukas' solutions to helping his mommy and daddy carry some things through the various airports. Very creative, don't ya think? He begged and pleaded for me to put Logan in the backpack. But I am quite certain that Logan weighs exactly as much as his big brother. The little guy likes to eat. Actually, that is an understatement. The little dude literally goes nuts when he even sees you walk toward the kitchen. Then there was Lukas - he is tall and skinny. He has maintained a steady weight of 49.5 pounds for the last two years. Lucky dog. I wish I could grow upwards and not outwards two years in a row! And here is what a 5 year old looks like after being up all night traveling:
Poor little fella. Oh but how this look of utter sadness was washed away the moment we walked off that jet way and said "Look....there's Papaw!!!" as we pointed in the near off distance. We could see Papaw, and he saw us. He started waving his arms. And Lukas bolted. Literally took off, I could hear the screeching from his shoes. And to our amazement, he was veering away from Papaw. I saw it all play out. It was CLASSIC. One of those "i-sure-wish-i-woulda-had-the-video-camera-rolling-cuz-we-coulda-made-it-big-on-America's-Funniest-Home-Videos" moments. Lukas was running full speed toward the wrong man! And about five feet from the stranger, Lukas realized his mistake. And again, I could hear the screeching. The sound his stopping shoes made as he was yelling "papaw!!" and in an instant realizing it was not papaw...but some guy with the same hair...or lack there of. Sorry, Papaw. You know I love you, hair or no hair, right? Anyways, my loving husband and I saw this, Papaw and Uncle Jonathan saw this. It was hilarious. Lukas turns to look at his mom and dad with a look of question and humiliation. Only to see us keeled over in laughter. I did manage to point beyond Lukas so he would know where to turn and look. Then, once again, I could hear the screeching shoes and he saw his Papaw...and then the embrace. It is always such a heart warming moment. Lukas and his Papaw. They sure are great together. 
Remember how cold I said it was up there in Indiana? Well, here's proof:
Yep, that's me and Logan greeting the neighborhood canine, Huckleberry. And trying desperately to stay warm. Did you notice my three coats, extra hat, two hoods and blanket? And I was still cold. I am starting to think that the Texas weather has ruined me for good. I am now a whip in the cold. So much for skiing. I would turn to ice after the first run.
The picture reminds me of one of those women that used to, or probably still do, carry their babies on their backs all day. I just hope Logan was warm enough back there.
This is Sara...my sister-in-law. She's married to my loving husband's little brother. And that precious boy is their little baby, Micah. And Micah's about to be a big brother! I am 99.9% sure that Papaw and Gammie are gonna be blessed with yet another grandson. I know Gammie is still holdin' out hope for her first granddaughter...but all the rest of us think it's not gonna happen this time.Here's what opening Christmas presents looked like in the LePage home:
Fun, huh? Santa was so good to us all. wink wink.Lukas and his Uncle Johnny decided to make a gingerbread house.
Lukas is absolutely crazy about his Uncle Jonathan and Aunt Sara. He cried and begged and pleaded to go home with them. Biggest alligator tears I ever saw. It was precious. Since Lukas was a little boy I have maintained that I thought he looked a tad bit like his uncle. And this picture proves it beyond reasonable doubt. Does not anybody agree? Them there are some strong LePage genes! Just see for your self:
All of this, because two people fell in love...*sigh* It was a wonderful 8 days. We were all sad to see it end. I think we all agreed that it was certainly one of our most favorites. Gammie and I cooked and spent lots of time together in the kitchen, Papaw and his kiddos played lots of basketball, the cousins got well acquainted, Jess and I shared some sweet smelling moments together...I could go on and on...but here's some of my favorites from the week:
Obviously, Logan is learning some new facial expressions. This one was a family favorite:
A little duet.
Oh that Micah boy was crazy for Lukas! They are gonna be great buds.
Oh, and here's another one of my 'uncanny photo' moments of my babies and their similarities:Logan, Christmas 2008:
Lukas, Christmas 2003:
Aren't they funny. The way they sit and just look. So sweetly. It's funny to me that I can take a picture of Logan and the minute I see it, it will spark this place in my brain that says "I have a picture of Lukas doing the same thing at that age!" I love the similarities. I wonder if it will go on their entire lives for me? I hope so.
I am gonna end with this one:
Could one ever want more than any of this for Christmas? Thanks Papaw and Gammie for a wonderful time and for all the memories that were made. I truly have been blessed to get to be a part of your wonderful family. Sara, you are a wonderful photographer, thanks for sharing your gift with this family. I already can't wait for next year's holidays!
Oh yes, that is much better! Thank you! And yes, it was as much fun to dress as a rough and tumble alley cat as it looks!
It's funny because now when I see these people that I worked with for so many weeks, I really just want to call them by their character name. Everyone just fit into their parts so well.
LOOK at that face! Lukas is holding a phone, obviously. One big part of the interactive-
Here is his dinner date. Her name is Ashley. Isn't she the most beautiful little thing? They have been friends for a long time. I just love her mom! She is one of my good friends. And I sure do hope they enjoyed the show. See that Christmas tree? That was the gumdrop tree center piece. And the guests at the table were in charge of decorating it. For the record, that tree was pretty bare at the end of the night. We won't go into details about how many fingers had touched those gumdrops. But like Wally says, "gives it extra flavor!"
Ain't he a real charmer!? And he was such a good dancer! 
I wonder what will be in store next year for 
All for a boy who does not like icing. But he was still stoked about the idea.
Oh, and naturally, as my luck would have it, they didn't 'stick' to the cookies. So, while they looked cute sitting there all colorful, the moment you pick one up to anticipate the exact second that your lips will meet the divine sweetness of this holiday goodness, you hear it. You know. The rainy sound of all the sprinkles hitting the floor. And as you jump back to realize what has just happened, you inevitably step on exactly 1000 of them. Then they stick to your socks all night. And if you are real lucky, you will then step in a drop of water and then you have pink, red, blue and white streaks all over the kitchen floor...and carpet. All hypothetically, of course. Oh, whats that? Did it sound like I was talking from experience? Yeah. Maybe I was. Maybe that's why it's already almost midnight and I just sat down from cleaning the kitchen and scrubbing aforementioned floors. All in the name of sharing holiday joys with my oldest boy. And yeah, it was totally worth it! Oh, and we got some mighty tasty cookies out of the whole mess. Logan was there to help too. He sat on the floor and got a head start on picking up the sprinkles. Although, I am quite certain he didn't put them in the trash can...the 10 second rule is still in effect, right?
Yeah. The look on Matthew's face pretty much says it all. That's exactly how I feel about the slithery things! On a happier note:
Three little bambinos. Oh, yeah - and you can kinda see the giraffes in the background. I guess I need to work on my photography skills, huh? That's just me though. More focused on the kids than on what's going on around us. And speaking of being focused:
No, really. He did have a good time and he enjoyed stopping to see all the different animals - as long as they were brightly colored and not being all sedentary like those crocodiles were acting. 
See, this photo really misses the look on Logan's face. Like I said earlier - I need to work on my photographing abilities. But he was totally focused on those pretty pink birds. Here's one where I changed my focus:
Only because he was trying to get at Logan's Cheerios! I wanted to give him one sooo bad, but I held myself back. Cuz I am sure he would have told all of his other little billie friends and then they would have all been trying to stick their funny looking tongues through that fence. Oh, and just one more crazy animal:
Oh, wait. That was not an animal we saw at the zoo. This was an animal I spotted outside our brand new digs. But, like I always say: 'better out than in'! I am shivering. Again. Now, if I could just get my hands on that big snake...I am certain he'd take care of this little problem!
And just in case you forgot, Lukas is a boy of many faces..none of which smile sweetly or shyly - is that a word? for the camera.
This is the best he could do. I wonder what his senior pictures will look like? I cant wait to see those in about 13 years...
LOGAN 
Cute, huh? Totally racked. I think the LePages call this "one leg up".
Uncanny isn't it? I wonder if Logan will always follow in Lukas' footsteps?