and then the girls and I got busy planning.
The morning of the party I ran a bunch of errands and picked up all the last-minute things like rolls and more treats. When I got home, the girls and I got busy arranging everything. One of the big things was putting the wrapping paper on the walls for our photo booth backdrop. This was a big job and we were having trouble finding tape that would stick. Next time I need to use a lighter weight wrapping paper...if there ever is that "next time."
Minutes after we got that thing taped up, it fell. Brita quickly exited the room and found some peace in her room while Leah stuck with me while we figured this thing out. We taped it back up and after a couple hours it fell again. We finally decided to hang it vertically even though we liked the chevron stripes going the other direction. We got that put up and after a while one of the pieces fell. Leah finally told me we weren't putting it up again until right before the party was to start. So about fifteen minutes before party time, she and I were at it again. That baby stayed put until the last people were having their photo taken. Perfect timing. Pain in the butt.
We ate first and people brought some good stuff I tell ya. And this family can EAT. We were crammed in the kitchen and sent a bunch of the older kids downstairs, but you do what you have to do with a crowd that size - 34 in this case. That's a bunch of people to stuff into a house.
After dinner, some of the kids liked grabbing the props and having their picture taken.
Some other people joined in the fun as well, but those photos are on Kathleen's camera. We tried a picture with all the kids gathered around grandpa and grandma. Turns out I didn't plan the location of the photo booth very well because we couldn't stand back far enough to get everyone in the picture from a good angle. Darn.
Wrangling a crowd of that size also has its challenges. Ha!
After the photo fiasco, we put everyone into teams by giving everyone a slip of paper with a Christmas carol on it. Everyone had to sing their Christmas song and find the other three or four people who were also singing that song and that was their team. We split up all the families and had all ages on each team. We told each team to choose one person to wrap up and they went after it...
The results were awesome.
After having them jump up and down because it was funny, we opened up their faces.
Then we told them to break out. That's when some of the kids really went nuts-o. We've got some wild kids who know how to have a good time in our bunch.
As I watched all those cute kids get wrapped up by aunts, uncles, grandparents, and cousins my heart swelled even in the chaos of the moment. I couldn't help but think that playing together is good for families and how great it is for these kids who will always remember that Uncle Eric or Aunt Allison or Grandma M wrapped them up that one year at the Christmas party.
When we were ready to settle down a little we gathered in the family room. We visited for a little bit, the kids decided if they wanted to sit and be quiet or go downstairs and play and then grandpa read us a cute little poem about nasty fruitcake. He even brought a fruitcake so all the kids could taste it later. It was funny because some of them seemed almost scared to taste it. I think they should have been scared because that stuff is disgusting. But I'm so glad he introduced my kids to it because it was a part of my childhood Christmases. I remember Grandma Jolley always having and making fruitcake around Christmas. It's so interesting how things change over a generation or two.
We opened our presents from the sibling gift exchange and then we sang some Christmas carols. Mozelle asked me what was wrong with me when I told her we didn't have music for many of the fun Christmas carols and that cracked me up. Even so, I made a big note to myself to get one right away. So we bumped along singing a'cappella and then we sang a bunch of hymns. It's always fun to sing with this family because there's a lot of talent and love for music in the group.
Everyone hung around a while longer except for Amber and David whose little kids needed bedtime. These parties are kind of hard on the little ones. Anyway, lots of us visited and the kids played. They even went outside to jump on the trampoline in the cold and rain. That meant lots of mud was tracked into the house, but it was great watching the kids having so much fun together.
Jared recruited a few of the guys to help him load up the tables and chairs we borrowed from the church. It was nice to have those packed up and returned. It was a big job for Jared and me to get them to the house and set up and it felt good to not have to deal with that in addition to the rest of the mess.
Jared and I stayed up until after 11pm cleaning everything up and putting all the decorations back on the tables. We were exhausted, but it was kind of nice to re-live the evening together and think about all the fun we had with his family. We talked about what we'd do differently next time and hoped that the little things that might not have gone as smoothly were overlooked by everyone because the best part of the whole evening is that so many of us were together.
I thought about how it's a lot of work to bring this big group of people together on the Monday night before Christmas each year, but I'm so glad that everyone is willing to take their turn and to do whatever they're asked to do to pull these things off. Because family is worth a little extra work and family is worth some of our time.
I thought about the great spouses of these Szymanski siblings and how significant it is that they not only support this kind of thing, but immerse themselves in it as well. These spouses aren't just bystanders to family events. They participate and give themselves and their love. That's what good people who are part of strong families do. They make their in-law's traditions and priorities their traditions and priorities.
I thought about Keith - he is definitely out of town with work more than he's in town. Even though that time he gets with his little family is precious, he and Katie sacrificed some precious family time to come with their kids to the party. I thought about Chad and Julianne - because they live in Kanab they don't usually get to come to these things. But a week or two before the party they looked at their calendars and figured they could squeeze in a quick trip up north. They could have done a lot of other things that Monday night, but they made it a priority to come to the party too.
I don't know what other things everyone else could have been doing that night, but I know that everyone who was in our home is busy and has a lot going on in their lives. Regardless of what other things might be weighing on them or consuming their energy and time, they made it a point to be at the family party and that meant something. And that speaks something to the kids. The kids in this family probably don't even recognize what is going on, but they are learning how it feels to be surrounded by family and someday they will recognize how being part of something so big and so great has influenced their lives for good.
I'm sure grateful for this family of ours and for the effort that everyone isn't afraid to give in order to make some lasting, bonding memories. I'm grateful for Christmas and for traditions that bring us together with the people we love the most.
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