Happy Festivus!

We brought some of our New Mexican traditions with us to Tennessee and this year was no exception. My mom and Rene joined us this year for Festivus and I think we can all say we had a great holiday this year!We started out Christmas Eve with some snuggles...

and continued with a tractor pull...

We then decorated Christmas cookies. My Grandma used to make very special "Santa Claus" cookies every year and I continue the tradition with my kids. The kids loved putting the frosting on, but the surprise decorator was...Papa...He seemed to really get into the spirit and make the cookies b-e-a-utiful! I think he didn't want to waste the frosting, but he was definitely in the festivus spirit nonetheless.

One of the best things this Festivus was that Luke got to come home for several days and relax from the demanding hours of his new job. Here he enjoys the sunshine on the back patio while talking to his parents on the phone.

One of our traditions is to make a big meal on Christmas Eve night so this year we repeated the meal from last year since we lost of the pictures from last year due to a computer malfunction (and, yes, it was the computer... not me blaming the computer). I made spicy shrimp pasta with tomatoes and basil for an appetizer and steak diane, roasted potatoes with rosemary, and peas for the main course. Dessert was a Christmas cake (red velvet...mmmmm...my favorite).

It was wonderful to have my mom here because she is a super chef and really helped me in the kitchen...

Trying to take a photo successfully with many people and with two of them being squirmy kids...we managed to get these two...MERRY FESTIVUS 2010!!!

And, I have to say, that having my mom help in other ways in the kitchen was the best part...hehehe...

We were all sufficiently stuffed for sure. After dinner we got the luminarias set up and lit a little fire. This is a Northern New Mexican tradition and Española, NM (where my mom and Rene live) lines the streets with luminarias and little fires. All the residents drive around with their lights dimmed (remember Española is the lowrider capital of the world) while gazing at the little lights. I am not sure if this is still done, but it is one of my fondest Christmas Eve traditions. Our wood was a little wet, so our fire didn't last too long...just long enough for a few marshmallows to be toasted before bed.

Santa found his way and arrived while we were all asleep...

And the next morning, the kids couldn't believe it. Here are a few photos of the mayhem. I tried to spare the ones of the adults looking like they just got out of bed (6:15 was the wake-up call) and show some highlights.

Since we were up before daylight, when the sun had risen we saw....

It was a white Christmas in Tennessee!!!!!! WOOOOOHOOOOOO!!!!! YIPPEEEEEEEEEE!!!!! We did a bit of sledding...

We then had Christmas Dinner with our good friends, the Williams' Family. Thanks, for a delicious country Christmas!

And then we did a bit more sledding...

This Festivus was a great one and it was so nice to spend it with my mom!!!

Pre-Christmas Festivities

The holiday season kicked off with a major first event...going to the Tivoli to see Brice Martin (a dear friend to us) and the Chattanooga Boys Choir perform the "Singing Christmas Tree". Well, we all looked fancy for the matinee performance...
The kids in sweaters knitted by their Great-Aunt Karen and Kestrel sported a hair-bow. We made it to the performance and found our seats and I should have known it was going to be a rough one when Layton shouted, "Mom, this is really kind of boring," while the Boys Choir was mid-performance. So, we did not make it until the end and I left wondering, "What in the world was I thinking in taking these two to something like this by myself?" Good news: lesson learned. We just aren't old enough for stuff like that yet.

Next in holiday fun was the Annual Kids Christmas Party hosted by our great friends Laura and Anne Marie.
We tried to get all of the kids together for a photo, but with four 2 year olds, one 3 year old, a 4 year old and an 18 month old, the photo was a bit hard to set up.
In this one, Anne Marie is conducting, Acadiana had the right idea and was picture perfect and Layton wanted to be the center of the photo.

All of the kids received a gift from the guest of honor, Gran-Jan and it was great to have be a part of our kid-ridden life for a night. Thanks, Jan, for thinking of the kids!
All of the kids were dressed in their holiday gear. Layton had another one-of-a-kind sweater on made my Aunt Karen and the Martin Sisters were as cute as ever with their elf inspired look.
Of course, I think Kestrel is the cutest so her Christmas Tree jumper was perfect.
Laura had each of the kids create their own gingerbread house. It turned out to be a lot of fun and each mom had to help out a lot with the little ones.
Here is a series of photos on the house building...

After craft-time, Laura provided an excellent meal for all of us to share. She is a terrific hostess and always outdoes herself. She made wraps, hummus and corn chowder for the moms and mac n cheese and chicken nuggets for the kids. Delish!!
Kestrel got to open a present before Christmas and she enjoyed ripping the paper.
And after totally destroying Laura's home, it was time to put shoes on and say good night. Thanks, Laura and Anne Marie, for having all of us and making it such a special party for everyone!And, keeping with Christmas, the weather decided to show us winter the next morning...

Layton loves the snow and bundling up, but I couldn't coerce Kestrel out of the house. Maybe she wanted a faux-fur lined snow suit since she is such a princess. They were back in the house ready for hot cocoa in a flash - it was only 4 degrees including the wind chill.

After having such fun festivities with my kiddos, I needed a vacation (and several stiff drinks). It was a difficult semester for me (to say the least) and some time away was just what I needed. Nana and Grampa came to stay with the kids (Luke still lives in Jacksonville, FL) while I jetted off to Seattle to see my friends, Dave and Coreen.

They were excellent hosts and Coreen made her famous pad thai to celbrate the 1-year anniversary for Dave's business Alembic Media, LLC. His business is growing and Dave, per usual, is doing greatWe even got a bit cheesy....and Dave loved it!! Congrats, guys. Keep working!!I then hopped on a train and headed for Portland where the all-girls met me for our annual trip. This year, there was a new addition....
Trent Grier!!!! He is absolutely wonderful and Sheila is the BEST mom! He is such a good baby that we said he could come every year, but I bet Sheila would say otherwise (I mean, it is necessary for a mommy to get a break every now and then).
It was a low key weekend full of the usual: shopping, eating, drinking, laughing and happiness! We are the luckiest girls in the world to have each other!! I love you all!!!
One of the highlights for me was the trip to Voodoo Doughnut.
SOOOOOOOOOOO GOOOOOOOOOD!!!!
And, yes, that is a chocolate cake donut with chocolate frosting and cocoa puffs. And, yes, it was the best!!
But, truly, the highlight was spending time with my girls and getting to meet Sheila's little one.


I'd also say that Trent, aka Tobias, had a great time too. Who wouldn't with everyone loving on you all the time?

Now...BRING ON SANTA CLAUS!!!!

Layton Featured in Andrew Kornylak's Beta Series Video

The Beta - Long Ways Down from Andrew Kornylak on Vimeo.