Christmas Morning

On Christmas morning, mom, dad, and I got to open up a few presents from each other. I really started to dig opening presents! The tearing of the paper, the anticipation and surprise...I was happy to help anyone who needed it.
A couple of sweet neighbors of ours got me some gifts. Here is a cymball playing monkey from Brad and Roger.

Helping dad open a framed picture I drew for him.

Showing mom where my hiding spot is.

Trying on my new shoes that were in my stocking.

Christmas Eve

I was feeling kind of lousy on the days leading up to Christmas Eve, but I rallied to enjoy a great party at Uncle Mike and Aunt Judy's house.

Here Iam with some of the White Elephant gifts:
Spending some time on Papa's lap:

Aunt April and her boyfriend Matt:

Sneaky Keller getting in the picture of Tete and Katrina:

Mom and dad:

I spent a lot of time hanging out with Uncle Mike:

Aunt Mari (Mamo) got me some really neat books:

I immediately insisted that we read them together:

Double Binkies

I found two binkies in the house and decided to show what I could do with them. Although I was getting pretty sick, I was able to manage a cheeky smile for mom. Then, I took the binkies out and said, "Two!" as I held one in each hand. Mom and dad knew I understood "one," but they were amazed that I was able to use the word "two" correctly as well.
The week prior to Christmas, I came down with a terrible cold. All plans were cancelled in the house, parties were skipped and I spent a lot of time cuddling with mom and dad. My nose wouldn't stop running and I had a nasty croup-like cough that kept me up at night. Grandma Dee came over to help mom get some stuff done, but I wouldn't let anyone near me besides mom. After awhile, I did get some energy to show her the Christmas though. It seemed the only word I could say was "hug" all week; as I climbed up on my parents' laps and held on tight. We went to the doctor's office twice, but there was no clear infection. I had to get a steroid shot for my croup, which definitely helped, but I did not like getting probed and prodded at the doctors' while I was there. By Christmas Eve, I felt much better, despite having a terrible runny nose.

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.