by laura beth

Family fun with the Scott side of the family! Kenny has a lot of family here in Orange County and we all try to get together here at Grandma's (where Kenny and I are parked) for various family functions and holidays. It has been a little harder over the years to manage this as people get married and extended families, well, extend. All of the married family members' spouses have family in the OC as well. This year for Christmas, Uncle Brett, Aunt Cathi, Cathi's daughter Jen and her boyfriend Dean, and Kenny's cousin Nathan and his wife Christina all gathered Christmas Eve here at Grandma and Aunt Laurie's house for food and games. We played a game, exchanged a few gifts, and had a ribeye roast and Honey-Baked Ham. Kenny also typed out various Christmas writings (scriputures, poems, some serious, some comical-Dickens, Thoreau, Dr. Suess...) that we each took turns reading around the dinner table, lighting a candle with each reading. I think that this might be a wonderful new tradition for at least Kenny and I. It was a great evening.

Grandma, Laurie, Kenny and I all slept in a little Christmas morning. We watched It's A Wonderful Life and opened a few gifts. Later we had leftovers from the night before. Christmas Day is also Aunt Laurie's birthday, so the rest of the family came in the evening for ice cream sundaes and gifts. Kenny's cousin, his wife Aaron, and their girls, Madisyn and McKynzie, cousin Chase, his wife Carrie, and their 3 kids Caleb, Emma, and Sarah were all there, as were Nathan and Christina. Quite a houseful as usual. It's kind of amazing to me how close in age Kenny and his siblings are to all of their cousins, on both sides of the family. Now a whole new generation is growing up before our eyes!