Surprise

We've been avoiding her for a month.

Only a few people actually knew what was going on.

After all, it's Christmas and surprises are to be expected, right?

Christmas morning we were 3 hours away picking my dad up at the airport.  My mom called my brother to wish him and his family a Merry Christmas.  Mom asked to talk to one of her grandbabies but my brother was out and about and the grandson was at home with his mom according to my brother. Like he commonly does recently, my brother quickly got off the phone.  

I'm sure it was a quiet day for my mom and Papa.  Much more quiet than our 3 hour car ride back from the airport.  Especially with an extra 5-year-old in the back seat!  Getting closer to home, I began texting my brother, asking him to call my mom and pretend to get my nephew on the phone.  After all, that Christmas surprise was one of four noisy kids in the back of my van.  Brother was in a movie theater and couldn't make the call.  

How am I going to pull this off?

Should we let my nephew walk in behind the rest of us and see if she notices?  No, then we won't get to see her face.  We should put him in front so we can all see her reaction.  No, she might see him before we get inside.

Then a light bulb finally clicked for me.  Since my nephew and my J-meister are the same size, we put J's coat and hat on my nephew.  I coached the very excited children to walk in the house, greet Grammy and ignore "J".  They knew not to point him out, to just ignore him.  My dad caught it all with his camera. 

B walked in and says Merry Christmas Grammy.  Grammy greets B but is busy finishing up supper.  Grammy half way acknowledges kids #2.  Right behind him, in walks my nephew who Grammy hardly glances at.  What she doesn't know is that J is hiding out in the van and the little boy in J's coat and hat is my nephew.  My nephew walks in and meekly says "Hi".  This catches Grammy's attention and the following video is PRICELESS:

Thanks Dad for having your camera ready!  Thanks to my brother and his wife for letting my sweet little nephew come to see his Iowa family for Christmas.