Party ’til it’s 2009. . .

We had an absolutely AWESOME time with our Small Group on Wednesday night. We had them all over to our house for a casual New Year’s party. All of the couples came but one, which added up to 10 adults and 11 kids (it’s always great to be outnumbered). However, all of the kiddos were in bed by 8:45, but not after having a bunch of fun.

I used my juicer to experiment with my current favorite treat, Moe’s Tomatillo Salsa (I’ve already informed Chris that the next time I’m pregnant, this is what I will crave). I got a list of things that go into Tomatillo sauce off of the internet and just mixed them until it was somewhat right. . . and it wasn’t too bad!! Here’s what it looked like:
hmm. . . it tastes better than it looks on camera. Trust me.

The boys, of course, loved Ali’s train set.
AJ got comfy in the chair:
Brooks and Claire cooked us a delicious dinner:
I love how all of the kids arrive pre-jammied. It’s like having a pajama party!

AJ and Benjamin had a terribly dangerous game of “push the ball two feet back and forth”,
and Titus showed off his amazing hair with his shampoo commercial head shake:
Our living room takes on a whole new aura with 11 kids running around:
But no one noticed. After all, all the adults retreated to the kitchen:
So after we got all of the kids tucked in to every crevice and hole in the house, we set off to adult activities.

That’s right, Wii Fit.

Greg showed us his moves with a Hula Hoop. He definitely needs to audition for a night job of belly dancing.
Chuck dominated in Soccer ball heading. Along with a few cleats to the head, of course:
We had to move the balance board back for Jarrod, or the light fixture would have definitely come down:
Lydia soared in the ski jump with her perfect posture:
And David showed off his manly strength by doing push-ups.
And, as we always try to provide a safe and edifying environment within our small group, Greg and Julie worked out some natural marital stress with the help of Wii Boxing:
It was fun enough that Chris and I didn’t get to bed until 3AM!
Graciously, Ali let us sleep in until 9:45. I do love that kid!

After finally dragging ourselves out of bed, we headed to Mom and Dad’s for a traditional New Year’s dinner.

Ali and Eli had a great conversation about the ins and outs of doll-housing:
. . .until I interrupted to snap some photos.
“Moooooom, can’t you leave us alonnne?!?!?”

We took a lovely walk after lunch to see a new discovery of their property, a rock overhanging the creek about 30 feet up.
It’s amazing how much motherhood changes your perspective. Three years ago, I would have boldly walked right out to the edge of the cliff and sat down with my legs dangling off the edge. I adored heights.

But instead, I found myself standing there, scared to death and holding on for dear life, envisioning every terrible thing that could happen to my precious baby.

Luckily, she didn’t inherit my daredevilish streak. The whole time we were on the rock, she was saying, “be careful, Pop. Pop sit carefully. Be careful.”