Making Holiday Cookies

Aunt April came over Saturday, Dec. 18th, to help us make cookies for the holidays. First, we spent some time playing and I showed her all of the ornaments on our tree. During this holiday time, I found it necessary to explain all of the ornaments to any guest that came over. The tree, or "arbol" as I like to say, was so beautiful to me that I was sure everyone else wanted to spend time around it.
On Saturday, we all stayed up and baked cookies, but we still weren't done. So, on Sunday morning, we all got up and continued baking in our jammies.

Mom gave me an apron (made by Aunt April last year), some cooking utencils and I was off. April even snuck me some of the gingerbread cookie dough, because it didn't have any eggs in it. It was so delicious, that I thought I should stay close by in case she floated any more my way.

Sunday afternoon, TeTe and Papa came by and decorated their gingerbread people to look just like themselves. Unfortunately, I started not feeling 100%, so I spent much of the afternoon rocking and reading with Nana, while everyone else decorated.

Christmas Lights

On December 16, mom and dad took me to Snowman Lane to see Christmas light displays for the first time. We bundled up and walked down the street. Mom pulled me along in my wagon and dad took Emma. Nobody wanted to miss the fun!

Now, it is a little known fact that I LOVE lights. When I was younger, I would squint my eyes to make them look different. Now, I am interested in naming all of the colors, or telling someone if they are off or on. You can imagine my excitement and surprise when we started to see the lights from around the corner. The first house only had a few icicle lights, but I thought it was great.

Little did I know what was in store. Some of the houses had moving characters and elaborate scenes.

This house had a display that went to music every hour. We missed the show, but we did get some popcorn to share (They were selling it right out front!)

At this house, I got out of the wagon and stared for a long time. After awhile, I noticed

reindeer on the roof. This was actually the first night I started to recognize Santa Claus. By the end of the evening, I was saying his name, along with other words, such as, reindeer, penguins, and cold.

Playing the sax & other news

My girlfriends down the street, Hannah and Sarah, gave me these awesome musical instruments. Some of them I hadn't figured out how to play them until recently. Although my sax (whistle) skills are still developing, I am thrilled that I can show you my first successful attempts at playing. 12/12/10

On the same day, mom helped me convert my bed to a "Big Boy Bed." We spent some time that afternoon practicing getting in and out on my own. It is pretty great!

To top it all of, I discovered how to turn my lamp on and off. This is the one light switch in the house that I don't have to convince my parents to pick me up to use it.

Ornament Giving

When mom and dad first got married, they started a tradition of giving each other an ornament every Christmas. Apparently, last year, I got a few ornaments signifying my first Christmas. This year, mom and dad picked out some great ones based on things that we have done throughout the year.

First, dad helped me open each one.

Here dad and I are, holding up our ornaments mom got at the Academy of Sciences. Mine is a sea horse and dad's is a cool fish.

I also got a giraffe, elephant, and zebra to represent my first trip to the zoo. Later on, mom found garbage can, garbage truck, and tractor ornaments. These were awesome, as they are my latest interests.

Dad also got a pair of hockey skates, because mom and he were going to go to the Shark's game together right after Christmas.

Daddy's Graduation 12/2

This last month, Dad graduated from the Police Academy. He had done the modular program and has been attending classes every Tuesday & Thursday night, all day Saturday and many Sundays, for the past year. Mom and I are thrilled that he is done and we get to see him a little more. However, we appreciate all of the hard work that dad put into his schooling. It paid off, too. He received awards for Best Recruit of the Class, and Best Academic Recruit! Good job, Daddy!!!
The ceremony itself was a little long and we couldn't hear the speakers that well, so I found some ways to entertain myself...
Reading with Papa:

Practicing knuckles and "blowing it up" with mom:

Waving to dad:

Playing with my racecar:

During the ceremony, dad had to pay a lot more attention than I was:

He had to say an oath:

But, he did get a few smiles and laughs in too:

A Friday Thanksgiving

Most years, our family gets to celebrate Thanksgiving twice. On Fridays, we often head to Grandma Dee's house and grub on some delicious food. This year was no exception. We got to spend time with Grandma and Grandpa Neff, Grandma Dee & Larry, Julia & April.

Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving dinner at Great-Uncle Elmer and Great-Aunt Lee's house in Petaluma.

Lounging after a big meal...
Attempts at a family portrait:

Yummy food and a great time. Great seeing everybody!