A Day at the Park: January 2012

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Happy Birthday, Guillermo! You are 8!!

Happy birthday, Guillermo! We love you!

Guillermo turned 8 on Saturday. I still feel a little strange saying that number. 8!

We celebrated the day by taking two of Guillermo's friends to Frankie's for some video game action. Another friend went out for sushi with us and then spent the night. As far as birthdays go, this one was a pretty good from my perspective. I think Guillermo was pretty pleased, too. He opened presents in the morning and then spent the rest of the time before his party putting together another Lego set. Maya was over the moon excited about her brother's birthday and put herself in charge of decorations. She worked nonstop in the morning, alternating between frosting the cake and spreading balloons around the house. I don't think she stopped talking once. She worked so hard she fell asleep the instant she sat down in her car seat to get to the arcade.

I couldn't leave her out. She worked hard to make his day special.

His baseball cake by Maya and me.

The Day After Christmas

Showing off the second round of his Christmas presents.

Guillermo concealed his disappointment well, but he was sad that he didn't receive the Lego set he wanted most of all, The Black Pearl, on Christmas morning. He's getting savvier in the ways of Christmas though, and he kept a close eye on the large package with his name that we left unopened under the tree on Christmas day.

My parents arrived the day after Christmas and we saved the presents they gave to us for that day. I think the Black Pearl was the first gift Guillermo opened and he breathed a sigh of relief. Maya was thrilled with her American Girl doll, who she later named Claudia. She especially loved the brush that came with Claudia. And, she loved the matching aprons she and Claudia both received.

Our visit with my parents was great. We went for a hike, my dad took the kids to a movie (Alvin and the Chipmunks, thanks dad!) and my mother and I took Maya to the First Night Celebration in Raleigh. It was Parisian-themed and Maya is all about France these days.

Throughout the week, Guillermo also hosted several Lego parades in his room to showcase all of his (and Lego's) designs. It's quite impressive and I would show pictures but he never managed to put on a shirt during the parades.

Showing off her new American Girl doll, Claudia, along with Jenny in her new bag. She's wearing her new apron and headband, too.

Sassy Maya, telling Grandpa something about his iPad.

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Christmas - The Best Day Ever

Maya declared this Christmas "The Best Day Ever." Guillermo might have declared it that, but he was too busy building his new massive Lego set to talk.

We had a great, fun, lazy, snuggly Christmas day. I woke up early and laid on the couch while I waited for the kids to stir. Guillermo woke up first, at 7 a.m. Perfect. He even had to go wake Maya while I woke up Will.

They loved their gifts. Santa brought Guillermo a Ninjago Lego set; he brought Maya a guitar and another harmonica. Other gifts for Guillermo: a board game, a Greek Gods card game, a Harry Potter DS game, books from Tia, more legos from Lily and Tony, a Star Wars Lego set and a Skateboard. Maya picked up a loom with sparkly yarn to make a hat, a Lego set from Guillermo, books from Tia, a Wii game, and ... hmmm, I'll have to update this a bit later.

I went for a Christmas morning walk and later Maya and I went to a friend's house to deliver a few gifts and stayed for about an hour. The boys didn't leave the house at all, and I think that was the best part of Will's Christmas.

As Will made calzones for dinner, the kids and I decorated the train cake, our Christmas Eve tradition that we postponed a day so they could have a slice of Jesus' birthday cake at church. The train cake, as you will see, is a bit messy. Somehow they ended up in a contest to see who could get the most candy on a train car. Ick! They loved it, though!