The holidays that never end...

So I arrived on the red eye in Cleveland on Friday morning - slightly exhausted though not as horrible as some of my red eye flights have been in the past. I came home to surprise my parents for the "Johnson Christmas" gathering at my younger brother's (Mike) house. Mike and I ran around all day on Friday buying a few last things. I took a nap and then we headed out to see one of Mike's high school friends while we waited for Mark, Margie and all the girls to show up. Of course, in Johnson family tradition, we ended the night at 3 a.m. playing drunkin' Wii and falling asleep on the futon in the basement (which is really, really nicely redone). Saturday morning wasn't as nice to me as I expected but after a few hours of playing with the twins and an hour nap (at one point the girls yelling loudly in my ears "Aunt Michelle are you dead?!"and laughing hysterically), I was good to go for the rest of the day.

With my brothers out getting some late lunch and Margie in the shower, me and the girls were the only ones around to answer the door when my parents and family friend arrived. My father did a double take and said "You're not suppose to be here." And my mother was thrilled. It was a nice surprise and no one had a clue though Mark had suggested it back in October. It was a nice surprise. And after many promises to the girls about opening presents (when Grammy gets here, after lunch, after your naps) we opened up some gifts, ate some homemade-ish pizzas, and got back to Wii (minus the drunkin' part for me.) It was again good times as the girls wanted to play and Mike, Mark or Margie would try to do Wii skiing or hula hooping holding a 40 lbs 3 year old twin - making it even funnier. They also entertained us plenty with their pink and purple boas and tiarras and microphones - singing songs that only they knew in rock star fashion.

Getting to bed at a much more reasonable hour (like 1:30 a.m.), the parents came back for bunch and lunch, some movie watching and hanging out with the little baby (who looks JUST LIKE her sisters did at that age.) Eventually everyone trickled out of the house and I was dropped off at Rebecca's house to hang out with her, her twins and 8 year-old son. They are just like Energizer Bunnies - also singing and running around (what is it with twin girls!?) without the slightest care that they don't know me from a random stranger on the street, in pink and white tutus like little forest fairies or wood nymphs (and they kind of look like them with their little noses and unruly hair). I followed them upstairs to look at some gifts they got for the holidays and Gabriel went on to tell me that they sleep in the hallway. I verified it with Rebecca and yes, her twin girls sleep in the hallway between her parents room and Gabriel's room. I think that's hilarious. Rebecca decided it was a battle she couldn't win - and what was the problem - at least they slept, with pillows and blankets on the floor.

And now with only a day and a half left of this very short trip, I'm trying to catch the other people on my short list: one of whom I didn't see the last time I was here, one with a new baby, and another who I spend a very short amount of time with. But without a car and less than 48 hours left in Cleveland, I'm going to do the best I can... until I can come back out again.