Christmas Eve

We went to Gramp's house for Christmas Eve. Gramp made a delicious turkey and the rest of us were in charge of the side dishes.

Gramp carving the turkey and uncle Mike making the mashed potatoes:

Cousin Erika and Emma:

Emma kept staring at uncle Mike's beard:

Emma's New Expression

Emma just started making this awe face and we think it is really cute!

More Presents

Last night Gramp, aunt Jan and Carol (friend) came over for pizza. We had a great time and after we were done with dinner we opened Christmas presents. It was fun watching Emma tearing up the paper into tiny pieces; she was having so much fun! I never thought that paper can entertain Emma for such a long time!

With aunt Jan and Carol:

Together Again

Cameron made it to Ohio yesterday morning. This is the first time that Emma has been away from her Daddy and her reaction when she first saw him again was cute. She was shy but after a few minutes she was extremely content.

I was very happy to have my dear husband with me once again!

"Heat Wave" in Ohio

Ohio has been experiencing really cold temperatures before our arrival last Saturday. I think Emma and I brought the "warm" weather from New England with us because it was 40 degrees this morning. Ohio has had 12.5 inches of snow this month and Massachusetts has had a dusting that melted within an hour.

When we got here, Grammy Douglas had a basket full of new clothes for Emma. Here she is wearing a cute red fleece and posing for the camera with Grammy Douglas:

Christmas Vacation in Ohio

Emma and I made it to Ohio on Saturday morning. Emma did really good during our flight and John and Nancy were there to pick us up from the airport. Emma recognized them immediately and was excited to see them again.

We had Gramp and aunt Jan over for dinner on Saturday. We enjoyed tamales de chile colorado and tamales de dulce that I had made back home and Emma had yogurt for the first time.

Here's Gramp entertaining Emma:

With Aunt Jan:Grammy feeding Emma yogurt for the first time (notice Emma's Christmas tree hat, this is a gift from Muriel, our nextdoor neighbor):

Yesterday John's sister and nephew drove over two hours to meet Emma and spend the afternoon with us. They brought Christmas gifts and a huge tray of sugar cookies and peanut fudge! We had a Mexican lunch (my dad's birria and salsa) and I showed them how to prepare their tacos with lime, meat, salsa, onions, cilantro and salt. After a cup of coffee and cookies, we opened our Christmas gifts. Emma was very excited to tear the wrappng paper and try to chew on the bow. Gooffy girl!

We had a great time and we are really gratefull that aunt Mary and Evan got to visit us!

Evan, Emma and aunt Mary:

Nine Months

Packing

Emma is getting ready to go visit her grandparents in Ohio for Christmas. This will be our first Christmas with John and Nancy and we are really looking forward to our visit!

I started packing and it is amazing how much extra stuff we have to carry because of Emma. I think we might have to pay a little more for the extra pounds I'll be carrying in this green bag!

Christmas Party - Hunt

Last Friday we enjoyed Hunt's Christmas party with a great dinner at the Macaroni Grill. Emma had a great time sitting on the high chair and eating bread. Joy (one of the secretaries) entertained Emma while Cameron and I enjoyed our dinner. Fun times!

Tutu

Auntie Jenny gave Emma this cute tutu and "I love Daddy" onsie.

Emma was also having fun with her ballerina slippers:

Long Johns

We haven't had a big snow storm yet, but we are experiencing low temperatures. Emma has to wear Long Johns to keep herself warm when we go out for a walk.

A Plastic Box

A simple plastic box means lots of entertainment for Emma (and a break for Mommy):

Emma's Daily Readings

Here are some pictures of Emma's morning readings.

And just before she goes to bed, she reads something more serious:

With Daddy