Winter Break

The kids are back at school and we are back to our regular rhythms and routines, but oh, winter break was a blast! It's my favorite break each year because Gene works very little, so our days are full of family fun.

Here's a peek at some of what kept us busy this year:

We played lots and lots of games. Clue is a new favorite!

Gene made aebleskivers, fried pancake balls, one morning.

 The boys loved building a stick shelter at Nana's house.

We spent some time exploring the McGovern Centennial Gardens with Gramma on a beautiful day.

We didn't get to ride the Polar Express this year (severe weather prevented us from leaving Houston) but we kind of made up for it by visiting the Christmas Village at Bayou Bend.

Henry had a quick chat with Santa, after Christmas!

We rode a tiny train.

The holographic images on the side of the house told a story of the mischievous spirit of the house who tried to steal Santa's bag. It was hilarious and Will asked to watch it repeatedly!

Santa's reindeer were scattered throughout the grounds, but we found them all. The Christmas Village was a lot of fun and may be a new holiday tradition! 

We also went to see the Christmas trains at Second Baptist Church. What fun!

And our big exciting news is that we have a new kitty! We adopted Freyja, a torbie (tortoiseshell coloring with tabby markings) from the SPCA. She is 3 years old, declawed, and is the sweetest, friendliest cat! She loves to sit on your chest and cuddle up. Freyja and Weezie haven't quite made friends yet, but the rest of us adore her.  

Freyja loves to hide. Two of her favorite spots are the bag of bags in the pantry

and Will's backpack.

Needless to say, our winter break was quite exciting!

Christmas with Nana and Pop

After a quiet morning of unwrapping gifts and playing with new toys at home, we loaded up the car and headed to Nana and Pop's house, just in time for lunch and more Christmas presents. You can tell from the picture below that the cousins were so excited to see the piles of gifts under the tree!

Everyone got lots of goodies!

After presents, Gene took the boys outside to practice casting with their new fishing poles.

 

And the cousins had a blast playing together. 

We ended the evening with a delicious standing rib roast dinner, complete with scalloped oysters, garlic mashed potatoes, kale salad, roasted carrots, and rolls.

I hope your Christmas was full of family and fun!

Christmas Eve and Morn

The Christmas season flew by for us this year! On Christmas Eve, we had some of my closest girlfriends and their husbands over for our biannual Christmas Eve brunch. I didn't take any pictures but it is a wonderful tradition!

After Christmas Eve Mass, we gathered at Nana and Pop's for traditional codfish dinner. I snapped a photo of the five cousins in front of the tree.

Bilharacos (butternut squash doughnuts) are another delicious Portuguese tradition! 

Back at home, we sprinkled reindeer food on the front lawn

and wrote a note to Santa 

to leave next to the milk and cookie and Hershey's kiss.

So excited for Santa!

On Christmas morning, as is our tradition, no one gets out of bed until we hear Santa's bell and his hearty "Ho Ho Ho!" Then we rush downstairs to our stockings. Santa always leaves us a note (I don't know how he finds the time to do that!) and Will read it eagerly this year. It directed the kids to a spot behind the Christmas tree

where they found brand new fishing poles!

The stockings were full of nuts, oranges, chocolates, CDs, and much more!

Christmas coffee with a huge dollop of whipped cream! 

We don't buy the boys a lot of toys throughout the year, so Christmas is incredibly exciting. They got a great mix of items on their wish lists and surprises (like the fishing poles). A few highlights:

Henry loves his new Reptangles (turtles that snap together; this boy love building and turtles!).

Santa brought Magnatiles to go with his Magformers. 

Will asked Santa for a build-it-yourself-robot.

A beautiful new necklace for me.

Books, books, books! 

A new Wii U game for both boys

and a sewing kit for Henry.

We got tons of outdoor gear this year too -- a camp stove for Gene,

a 12-in-1 tool for each boy,

and a new go-everywhere watch for Henry.

We're foodies too, so Gene got a craft beer cookbook and some cheese paper

 

 and two new kitchen towels that say "Eat More Pie." 

We had a delightful morning celebrating Christmas at home!

Happy New Year

The four of us wish you a happy, healthy 2016!