Decorating the Christmas Tree

I know it's been awhile since I last posted, but I've been busy with Christmas stuff. You would not believe how hard it is to go shopping for 9 1/2 kids. I literally have to keep a list of what I've bought for each kid. It's horrible. Two years ago, I forgot to get Michelangelo anything but some stocking stuffers. The poor kid was so sure Santa hated him that he ran to his room crying. I had to pretend to find a $100 bill under the tree with his name on it to cheer him up. I never saw any of that money again.
But anyway, we set up our Christmas tree yesterday. It's a bit of a sad tree; there are huge gaps where no branches exist. But after putting on about six or seven strands of lights, more beads than you can shake a stick at, and a surprisingly dismal amount of ornaments (no one felt like doing much after the Simpsons turned on), I am happy to say I survived the experience. Not sure I can say the same thing about Bob, of course, but he's expendable.
Halfway through the meal, I whipped up some hot cocoa for everyone to enjoy. It tasted okay, though mine was a bit watery and tasteless, and I think everyone had a good time. I had to make three kettles of water to ensure there was enough for all 11 1/2 of us to drink some. I don't know what I would have done otherwise.

Driving to Bryce National Park

As I mentioned before, we drove up to Bryce National Park earlier today. About a couple hours into the drive, the kids started noticing white stuff on the mountains off in the distance. By the time we stopped for gas, they had realized it was snow, and it was covering the ground around us.
My babies reacted the way any kids would. They immediately called for a snowball fight. Sally Ann and Bob III were the only ones smart enough to stay out of it. The other seven and a half all started going crazy, making slush balls and throwing them with varying levels of accuracy. By the time we'd filled up our tank with overpriced gas, there was no unused snow left in the gas station parking lot. Michelangelo and Ezekiel were sopping wet, and Elizabeth, Dud, and Joey were not much better off. I had to lay towels down on the seats of the Builder Mobile to prevent them from getting the seats wet. Bob Jr, Bob IV, and Dyda Jr. were all victorious, without a single flake of snow on them.
After we left the gas station, the view got better and better. We went through this place called Dixie National Forest, and with the snow it was absolutely beautiful. For the first time in a long time, the kids got to see trees taller than houses, and with a dusting of snow, it was amazing. The picture above is of Dixie National Forest with snow, so you can see how nice it was.
We were all disappointed when we found that there was no snow at Ruby's Inn, which is where we are staying.