Long post, but it's a month over due.

I want to laugh as I type this next line, but, yes things have been a whirlwind in the Vrana household. Of course we had Christmas, and drove to John's sister's house to spend Christmas with them. We hosted New Years at our house, and that's where things started to go downhill. My Uncle Nelson passed away on the first. It came as a pretty big shock to all of us. I drove to Houston that Wednesday afternoon for visitation, and immediately turned around to drive back that night. It made for a long day, but, I will have to say that if you need something to keep you awake and entertained on the road, Kathy Griffin's autobiography will do it. After getting home, I wished that John and I had loaded up Miller, and all of us had been there for the funeral. I saw cousins that I hadn't seen in years, and I would have loved to have introduced John and Miller to them. Before I go any further, I'd like to explain my Uncle Nelson. At some point in my life, I started calling him Crankshaft. If you know the comic strip, it's about a lovable old curmudgeon, and that describes Uncle Nelson well. One time when he and Aunt Shanna were coming for a visit, I taped a ton of Crankshaft comic strips all around the room since they always slept in my bed while they were there. The nickname just stuck, and he would always sign cards to me from Uncle Crankshaft. He will be dearly missed.

Paw-paw was put in the hospital on the third for a blood infection. At first they thought he was losing circulation in his leg, and that he would lose either his leg or his kidney. It ended up being so much better than that. They cleared up the infection, drained his lung, and he's now home feeling so much better, maybe just a little weak.

After getting back from that, John, Dad, Austin, and I were all going to the Cotton Bowl on Friday. It was another quick trip, and it had a disappointing outcome. It was also the first time Miller had been left overnight without John or I there. He stayed with Nonna, and I think he did a good job. My mom might have been worn out by the time it was all said and done. Some point, during the course of all this, Miller ended up getting another ear infection. He's all better now, and he's just so much fun.

This weekend, Toby and Ann got married. We drove down on Thursday for the rehearsal dinner, and the wedding was Friday night. We had a fabulous time, and Miller was the life of the party - out there dancing until almost 11 o'clock. Most of you know how strict we are with Miller's schedule, but he did so well both Thursday and Friday night, and he's been catching up on his sleep the past two nights. We really couldn't have done it, if it weren't for Austin's girlfriend, Mary Alice. She was a life saver when it came to Miller because the rest of us were all in the wedding, and there's no way to keep an active 18 month happy during a full on Catholic wedding. John's mom also had surgery on Friday, but she seems to be doing well. We just got back from south Louisiana yesterday afternoon, so now, we're trying to catch up with everything that needs to be done around the house, including finishing taking down the Christmas decorations. :-P

John uploaded all the pictures and video, which I am so grateful for. He's a great guy!

Miller is into everything these days. Before Christmas, I had put some of his presents on the dining room table. John called me in there to show me that Miller had climbed up onto the middle of the table, little stinker.

John and I all dressed up for his office party.

Will they never learn? Mom, Dad, Mimi, and Paw-paw got Austin something special for Christmas this year. They left it at my house for storage, so I decided to "wrap" it for him.

What I mean is, I wrapped several boxes within each other, and...

sent him on a scavenger hunt all over the house...

and attic for them.

While he was in the attic, I pulled out his gift. Miller was helping him check out the specs.

Christmas Eve dinner - seafood gumbo. It was delicious.

Miller seems to like it a lot as well.

Uncle Austin got Miller a puppy dog pillow pal. He didn't like it as much as he like the one Uncle Austin got for Mary Alice, a purple and pink unicorn pillow pal.

He also got a broom and dust pan. He likes to sweep, but I'm still waiting for him to do it properly.

Playing on the couch with his uncle Austin.

Excited about getting his own set of keys.

Riding on his new 4-wheeler. He loves this thing. In fact, he throws a fit when he's removed from it (He has yet to get off of it voluntarily).

Christmas Day at Aunt Tess's and Uncle AJ's.

Granny Chris, Aunt Tess, and Miller

Riding the big 4-wheeler with Uncle Austin.

Trying on Daddy's shoes.

John and I, after the wedding on the party bus.

John, me, and Austin. I thought Austin was the one who wasn't able to keep his eyes open in pictures.

Jason, Austin, me, and Toby on the party bus.

The groom and bride (Isn't she absolutely beautiful?)

Most of the guys - they were a hot mess.

Showing off the new jewelry.

Austin and Mary Alice - seriously, she's a saint.

Miller danced with Aunt Ann during the money dance.

Dad and Mom - they were both readers for the wedding.

Miller, John, me, Mary Alice, and Austin at the end of the night.

This is how Miller was sleeping in his bed this morning.

Showing off

Playing with Uncle.

On his new ride.