Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Visit with Padillas in Pennsylvania

Right before Christmas, we visited our great friends Colleen, Mike, Kenzie, and Kyle near Philly for a couple of days. It was a blast!

Since we trailed a blizzard on our drive East, the Padilla house had 18 inches of snow to play in. Luckily, we were able to find Larkin a cute snowsuit so the kids got to go outside and play in the snow several times. This was Larkin's first real time playing in the snow and she did really well. This first picture is of the snow bunnies about to go outside for the first time... how adorable are they?! And, the photo of Larkin laying down in the sled and being pulled around was her during her very first sled ride! And, yes, she laid in it!







Colleen and Mike have refinished their basement into a giant, wrap-around playroom for the kids and it's awesome. They really did a great job. The kids really enjoyed horsing around down there and chasing after Sera. One unconventional toy that was a total hit - I totally want one for our house now! - is a giant parachute that Mike would drag around with the kids on it! Kenzie and Kyle "surfed", but Larkin laid there, just like on the sled!








Kenzie and Kyle loved having a dog in the house to play with. They loved petting Sera, chasing her around, and just knowing that she was there. Sera was a good sport too, although she did succeed in snagging a bit of Kyle's food away from him every now or then! The picture directly below is of Sera snuggling up to a giant lion stuffed animal in Kyle's room.... too sweet and ironic at the same time, considering Rhodesian Ridgeback's were bred to hunt lions!



Larkin tried out Play Doh for the first time at the Padilla's house. Despite her trying to eat it once or twice, she thought it was fun. The group of us also tried to have some fun playing "London Bridge" (see video) but Kenzie got a little upset, saying "Capturing a kid is NOT nice!" We thought it was hilarious! But, we thought it best to move on to another game... hiding underneath a blanket/tent! Brian also took the kids for a few fun "Blast Off" rides (see other video). We had so much fun just hanging out and playing game after game. Isn't that what it's all about?




The girls had some fun playing hair dress-up with Kenzie's array of clips and bows.



Larkin found these goggles and felt pretty cool in them, I think. We couldn't resist snapping a shot of the cool chicks together.


And last but certainly not least, the girls walking together hand in hand... I love it. We miss Colleen, Mike, Kenzie, and Kyle already and can't wait to go back!

3 comments:

Nan M Gough said...

What an amazing play room! It sounds like you had a great trip. I can't believe how big Larkin is getting! She is beautiful! Thanks for sharing...as always, it's great to hear how you are doing! Miss you all!

Love, Nan

Classy Mommy said...

these pics are the best ever! i love this post. maybe you should just imput it all as a million posts on classy mommy! your photography is a lot better than mine. miss you guys so much. xoxoxo love col

The Bucklers said...

She is getting so big! Larkin really is adorable! And she looks like the child in "A Christmas Story" all bundled up like that. :) Too funny, too cute!