My parents got me a tripod for Christmas and it's been pretty fun. We took some family shots right before Migs left in early January.
And here are some pics I snapped later in the month when Marcos and Dominic were wearing similar gray shirts:
In case you were feeling sorry for Christy (who was also wearing a gray shirt).
We also went to a couple of fun birthday parties in January, including one for 6-year-old Ella. She had a snow slide!
And this was at a birthday party for a school friend, 5-year-old Eli. I thought I was taking this video of Christy, not knowing Dominic was at the top of the slide too and that they'd come down holding hands. His friends Jaxton and Owen were on the orange slide, hence his quick getaway at the end.
This next one is technically February, but check out Dominic's reading skills! I think his sister is impressed.
And here's another February video featuring a singing performance by Christina.
Of course our December centered around Christmas activities and preparations, with the fun addition of replacing the flooring in about 70% of our house.
Christmas Recital
The kids' school does a Christmas recital every year, always on a Saturday morning at a nearby elementary school. Each age level performed a song, except the babies of course. This was Dominic's last one since he's graduating this year. His class sang I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas and since he was in the front row, we got some pretty good pictures and video footage.
Boys wear green and girls wear red. Our little red girl was not cooperative for per-recital pictures.
And here's a video of the hippo song:
I'm kind of going backwards because the oldest kids actually went last. And when they were finished, Santa came out as a surprise and handed out activity books. At this point, the littler kids had joined their parents in the audience, so it was kind of poor planning that the little kids had to watch Santa giving presents to the big kids. Some of them (mine not included) tried to walk up on the stage to see Santa but the teachers put a stop to it. Kind of sad! The little kids did get similar treats after their performances - only they got them from the school director instead of Santa.
Dominic's class, but you can't see him.
So going backwards in time, Christy's class sang Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. I guess you could say her pre-recital refusal to take pictures was foreshadowing the outcome of the whole event for her. She was buried in the back where I could not see her at all! So disappointing! I have to admit, though, I always hoped for an inconspicuous spot in the back in my childhood Christmas Program performances.
See that brown hat and sliver of forehead in the back left next to the girl with the Rudolph nose? That's our girl.
New Floors
On November 2, we had a valve under the little bathroom sink break and water came shooting out. I tried to contain the water as best I could while Marcos figured out how to shut the water off at the street, and the kids sat crying in the bathtub. Even at the time, I was amused by the cause for their tears. Dominic cried because he knew this meant there would not be time for a bedtime book and Christy cried because her little potty (which she was already barely using in favor of the big potty) was getting wet. I got pretty soaked and also filled a huge plastic trashcan (kitchen-sized) with water, but there was still water all over the floor and seeping out into the hallway and the kids' bedrooms.
It turned out to be a pretty big ordeal and we lived on partial concrete until the third week of December. Then a large crew installed new floors in one day, including moving everything we own into the bathrooms, kitchen, and garage, and then putting it all back in place when they were finished.
The old floor buckling up.
Fans drying the concrete after the damaged areas were pulled up. This stage was complete over a month before the rest of the demo and new floor installation.
Demo/installation day. You can't even tell this is the master bathroom.
Demo on the old floors.
A worrisome view as I drove away to work. Luckily, the neighbors didn't help themselves.
And the final results:
Christmas Decor
No description needed:
Santa
Per tradition, we visited Santa at the Domain. There were a few smirks, but no tears. He didn't have to ask them what they wanted for Christmas. It was a discussion they prepared for and initiated. Dominic wanted a Ninja Turtle bike and Christy wanted a princess dress and princess music. These were the exact items she gave her friend Payton at her mid-November birthday party the prior month. (The music was a mini-CD player with plastic "CDs").
Christmas Eve
By Christmas Eve, Tony, Migs, and Ita had arrived in Austin. All the Morales-Arazoza adults took Dominic to the movies while my friend Erica and I took Christy to get manicures. It was Christy's first time in a nail salon but she didn't need an orientation. She loved every minute of it.
She was totally fine with a stranger and sitting apart from me. Her chosen color was pink with glitter.
Marcos' family does their Christmas dinner on the 24th and we had a nice big group. In addition to our visiting relatives, we were joined by Yvette, her Mom Sylvia, Sylvia's boyfriend Gil, Mr. Knox, and Mr. Knox's lovely parents. Marcos made ham, prime rib roast, and potatoes au gratin and Sylvia and Gil brought tamales from El Paso. Dessert was apple pie and french silk pie, since none of us had eaten enough Christmas cookies that week.
The extra long dining table served us well. We also brought the 4-seater out from the kitchen when it was time to eat.
These were just the appetizers!
Christmas Day
The grown-ups didn't get much sleep between the guests leaving and the kids waking up before 6. But Santa came and even remembered to eat his cookies and drink his milk, so all was well.
Christy in a sleepy daze.
She chilled with New Baby for awhile before she looked in her stocking.
Santa put tic-tacs in their stockings because he thought they'd make the connection to Home Alone when Santa said his elf took all the candy canes home to her boyfriend, but you can't visit Santa and not get something. They didn't...but they liked them. :)
Books from YiaYia and Pop-Pop.
Baby doll accessories from Tia Yvette. She plays with them constantly.
Princess dress from Mama and Dada and doll stroller from YiaYia and Pop-Pop. New baby from Santa. And her name is officially New Baby.
Dominic riding his new bike! Christy wanted to take her Santa gift outside too.
Another popular gift from the Gerows. His right hand always beats his left hand at a game of hockey.
The rest of the day was low-key. We played with new toys, ate leftovers, and may have enjoyed a few games of Mexican Train dominoes.
Next up will be some January pictures (including new tripod use!) and maybe a couple of videos of our recent happenings.
