Christmas Day - Part I

Our Christmas morning began even a little earlier than Lola would have like. Usually, an early bird, she was not happy that we had to drop off her Auntie LouLou at the airport by 6 AM.



While an early airport trip was not ideal, it did work out because this allowed Lola and I to be the first ones in line at the Starbucks drive-thru window.

Yes, we went to Starbucks on Christmas morning.

I am by no means one of those Starbucks addicts, but our coffee press broke on Christmas Eve and well, it just isn't Christmas without a hot cup of coffee. I didn't expect Starbucks to even be open, but its inside lights shined like the North Star and ten minutes later I was sipping a peppermint mocha.

When we got home, I was pleasantly surprised when I saw that Josh was awake. I had expected him to sleep in because, due to his work schedule and the fact that we live with an infant, he never has the opportunity to sleep in. Instead, he was awake, and "ready to open presents."

I began to make breakfast (french toast),



while Lola entertained herself with a present Josh had opened on Christmas Eve.



We were amazed that she immediately knew what to do with it. Obviously, she has been paying attention.

Christmas Eve - Part II

Since Josh grew up celebrating on Christmas Eve and I grew up celebrating on Christmas morning, I believe Lola is going to enjoy the best of both worlds if we continue to celebrate the holiday like we did this year.

Essentially, we had a Christmas marathon.

We started off Christmas Eve in a bit of a frantic fashion with Josh having to work in the morning and me doing some last minute shopping at the outlet mall. Then, that afternoon as I was chopping some peppers for our Christmas Eve albondigas soup, I nearly sliced off the tip of my left thumb. After a quick eval and my persistence that I did not want to spend Christmas Eve in the ER, I salvaged my thumb with a band aid and Josh resumed the dinner prep.

Not too long after, we enjoyed our soup, some tamales, and tres leches cake.



During dinner, my sister called and announced she was coming to visit -- THAT night. While we waited for her flight to arrive, Lola let us take some photos of her and her wrapped loot.



She was pretty excited at the prospect of seeing her Auntie LouLou.



However, once she actually arrived, Lola seemed more interested in her Auntie LouLou's new blackberry.



That is, until she got to open some presents. Her Uncle Nick sent her a dolphin puppet from Sea World,



and Archie had a difficult time with its squeaky voice.


We quickly decided that the dolphin would have to stay in a place out of Archie's reach, otherwise it would probably lose its squeaky.

To be continued...

Christmas Eve - Part 1

Trying to convince a ten and a half month old to open a present was more difficult than we originally thought.

Holiday Cheer

I took the day off so I could do a few things around the house. My list for the day was pretty low-key: prep for Christmas Eve dinner, clean the kitchen, swing by the grocery store for said dinner.

I also attempted to introduce some holiday cheer to Archie. He didn't dig it.



Before you start to think that I have the most depressed dog in the world (which I probably do) and begin to believe that Archie is depressed because I torture him all day long (which I don't), please be rest assured that he is not the only member of this family that I love to dress up in silly outfits.



Lola just seems to tolerate me a little better. :)

Photo with Santa

When I was a kid, we usually attended the Christmas party sponsored by my father's employer. Hosted at the municipal gun range, we crafted ornaments and ate cookies with other cop kids while we waited to get a quick sit with Santa before he would escape out of the back of the clubhouse to chase down criminals. I remember loving warm fire, the smell of pine, and the token candy cane.

Ah, memories.


Wanting to create some holiday traditions for Lola, I thought it would be best to start with a photo with Santa. We already had a few pre-requisites like a cute Christmas dress and an adorable baby. I felt the other elements (such as finding a Santa) would be easy to add. I told Josh my idea.

"WHAT? Do you have any idea how many kids sit on his lap?"
"Uh. A lot."
"Yeah. A LOT. What about H1N1?"
"She was vaccinated."
"Well, she hasn't had her booster yet."
"She isn't going to have her booster shot until JANUARY."
"It's not safe."


Clearly, finding a daddy on board with the whole idea was going to be more difficult than I thought.

A few days after our initial conversation, I tried again, but was shut down. Finally, I decided that I was going to dress Lola up in her cute Christmas dress and sneak off to get my photo. Then, I researched the local mall Santa photo packages. The CHEAPEST I could find was $24.95 and it only included one 5x7 and four wallets! It explicitly said that I could not use a personal camera or cell phone to take a photo.

Even though I was willing to sneak off and get a photo of Lola with Santa, I knew I couldn't stomach paying nearly $25 for a few photos.


I felt defeated.

But then, a friend made a suggestion that Josh and I could agree on and we could afford.


And that is how, on a rainy Sunday afternoon in December, Josh and I took Lola to our local pet store to sit on Santa's lap. It was chaotic. It was loud. It created such hilarity that my face hurt after we left. Oh, but it was so worth it.

Half of our $10 fee went to the community animal shelter, Lola received a (human) germ-free experience, and a ten-year-old girl scout took the photo of which I now proudly own.




Merry Christmas.

All Archie wants for Christmas?

Dancing with Myself

Lola discovered that she is a fan of 80s Christmas music. Who would have thought?