Getting ready for the celebrations

My brother is getting married this weekend! The weekend after that will be Thanksgiving celebrations with my family in law. Soon after that we will be going back to my hometown for the Christmas holidays. So for a while now we have been preparing. Cleaning, rearranging, putting Xmas decor up (since traditionally in my family they come up the next day after Thanksgiving but we are going to be too tired to put them up when we come back), making dresses, packing... Yesterday especially was a prep day- with most of the above things getting checked off the list.

I did laundry and packed the kid's stuff and mine. I rearranged the living room so the tree would have a good spot. We decorated the house <3 Quijote brought up the tree and helped me put Christmas lights in the playroom. Miss E decorated the tree. Mr E ran around trying to get to the metal train (I eventually had to put it away. womp womp) and playing with the wrapping and the decor. Christmas music was on, the eggnog came out of the fridge (not for the first time, I must admit) and we even sent Daddy out for donuts (gosh it had been a long long while!). It was very nice.

HEY! There's the Christmas card from our Missouri friends MJ&C and from our Cali friends the Foxes!

Since I was moving things around, I also cleaned our rooms and rearranged Miss E's room so she wouldn't be sleeping right across the window anymore (it was nice for her to get the cool night air in the summer and even in the fall when the heating in her room got a little high, but not anymore).

I bought the golden frames the day before yesterday- second hand, for $15 both. That was in itself an adventure though! We got ribbon that same day and some other things Q needed for the Econ club and travel stuff for moi. As soon as the kids went in for nap/quiet time, I got to work on the flower girl's baskets.

 Another day we went shopping at the mall for shoes and outfits that we'll be using throughout the celebrations. This year we have not bought any new clothes for the winter!!! We have made do with the clothes we got for birthdays and the stuff that still fits from last year (I always buy too big but this is the first year it ever actually pays off! It makes no sense to me, given that Mr E grew well over half a foot this year. But there it is).

That day at the mall we also met up very briefly with a family who is housing a mom who recently escaped a bad relationship to help them a little bit. There is so much pain the world, but it makes me hopeful that there are still people out there willing to extend a hand to their neighbor. I have been following them on FB and they are all doing well, and many people in Amarillo have come together to help. It's amazing to me how awesome FB can be. 

Today we have been home, doing some last minute packing and waiting for Daddy to come to work so we can get on the road.

We also put olive oil in our hair. Haha! When I was a little girl, my mom would put olive oil in our hair and wrap a plastic bag around our heads. We'd walk around for hours in this (haha! brings laughter to my heart, this memory!) And so it's something I've been doing with the kids too (minus the bags as of yet, since it's a choking hazard, but I figure not for long ;) lol )
So, in the spirit of making connections to the past and "enjoying the threads that weave our families together" (from here) Here goes:

Yes, they took over the endeavor, as they usually do. Kids are such diy-ers.

crazy hair!! haha!!

 Okay friends and family!! We will see you soon!! <3

Growth Chart Day!

Since the last time I marked the growth chart was Nov 17 of last year, I decided this weekend was a good time to do it again. They have grown so much in just one year!! Maybe I should do this more often? In the interest of honesty, I should say they both disliked their outfits (sorry Nana and Abuelita) because they both had their own wardrobe plans. LoL! Well, here are the pictures I got.

Mr E is is almost 2 yo. He loves all things cars and trains. He also loves dogs and cats. He sings to himself in the car seat. He LOVES to play with his sister. Yup. She is still the coolest person in the world to him. His favorite game is pushing a toy car around- and most mornings he hands me a car so I can play with him. He also loves to take care of dolls and plush animals and push them around in the doll stroller. He loves the songs "Old McDonald" and "The Wheels of the Bus." He loves to read books and watch nursery song videos. He speaks in short one or two word lines. He can count to at least 10, and I think he's done to 13 or so on occasion. He knows his ABC song and can identify a few letters. He can do shape puzzles easily. He cannot jump yet, which surprises me, given that he is definitely a climber and dancer. He is almost done with teething! I think he only has a couple molars to go.
 

Miss E is 4 yo and is officially on a girly stage. She loves all things pink and frilly and princessy. She loves dolls and playing house. She is full of energy and loves to talk. She builds amazing arguments these days! And she tells stories. She draws from both real events and her imagination these days, so it's hard to tell sometimes which is which. She has imaginary friends and real friends, and both do all kinds of things and go on fun adventures with her- adventures that don't always make sense to me, but which I enjoy hearing about anyway. She loves her conversations with Daddy on her way home from school. Her favorite games are hide and seek, tag, and putting on shows (more dancing and storytelling). She speaks in full sentences now! And she understands -for the most part- how to conjugate simple present, past, and future. Some polite conditionals. She can write her name, and is starting to sound out the letters. She can count small groups of items, and can add on a few items. She can look at a small group of items and recognize the amount without counting. She loves puzzles and is really good at them! She has at this point learned to use scissors fairly well and can follow a line. She loves to trace letters on her cards! She can hold tools correctly, and knows how to use glue, watercolors, and other materials fairly well. She understands family relationships (being married, being a parent or a child, being a sibling). She is super sweet and has always been able to empathize to an abnormal degree, for which I am incredibly proud of her. 

They love each other <3

They did get candy as a reward. And by then Miss E had forgotten about her plans to wear a tutu.

It was tea time/lunch time after the pictures!

Yumm!!!

A Shower for the Bride and Groom to Be

Last weekend was one of those beautiful weekends a person remembers forever. I feel blessed to have my family and be able to partake in the festivities despite our geographical location. It was a weekend full of preparations and the final feeling of accomplishment and belonging. My parents worked hard making the front of the house more beautiful. They re-did the floor, painted, and added stone work to the windows, an European thing that has become very Mexican. We all planned, shopped, arranged, and prepared things together. And then we worried that the weather was not going to be on our side for an outdoor soiree so my parents made adjustments and we all prayed for the weather to be accommodating. And it was.
We had a grand ol' time celebrating T&M's love.

I posted most of my pictures on FB so I'll try not to repost too many. Just my favorites heheheh...

 

Such an intense loteria game! it was fun x)

Late Halloween Post

There's so much going on these days! I am having too much fun with party prep (we are throwing a bridal bash next weekend) and there was lots of Halloween parties. We went to the Discovery Center and Miss E's school had a Trick or Treat event as well. Sadly, out of respect for the parents of all the kids, I can't post a lot of the pictures I took- and then I forgot my camera when we went to the DC! But here a few of the pictures I have and think are okay to post online :)

the kids treat or treating with Kids Kollege

Miss E was excited that her teacher was wearing blue too!

The super nice ladies from the Student Medical Services office, one of the few places at WT that gave out candy :)

Mr E was a fan of this bowl! haha!

Miss E's class. I think it's so cool that this class has 4 teachers at all times!

Snacks are important of course! Miss E loves bagels with cream cheese.

And of course the TV watching....

aand the candy eating after trick or treating around the neighborhood on Halloween night.

As you may have noticed, Mr E refused to wear his Halloween costume this year. Womp womp! We had gotten him a really cute Snoopy costume. Alas, he would not budge. Maybe next time!