Let it snow!

Check out the snow on the roof and the grass! It snowed in the Houston area on December 4, which set a record for the earliest snowfall for the city. We had just come back from Dan's interview, yet Dan had stayed behind for another interview. I went to work, and it was fun to watch the snow fall down and talk to all of the customers who were in awe of it.

Nathan told me about a month ago that he doesn't like Texas. I asked him why, and he said, "Because there's no snow." Well, Texas delivered for us this year. The kids had fun throwing snowballs and eating the fresh snow. It melted off the ground the next day. Nathan told me he wished it would snow again. I agree, as long as it isn't like the storms they get up north.

We had a church Christmas party on December 5. The kids got to tell Santa what they wanted for Christmas. Sophia probably spoke so quietly he didn't hear her. I think she said she wanted "presents." I asked her what kind, and she said "yellow ones." Nathan said video games -- big surprise! He wants grownup games, but he also asked for "Luigi's Mansion," so I hope he'll be happy with that (I told him Santa doesn't give little boys "Left 4 Dead").

Sophia is pointing to her mouth since I asked her to smile. When I asked her what she wanted for Christmas, she told me "balloons." She wants big ones and little ones.

See how happy she is with this balloon? We were at Nathan's school's carnival, and the kids won these red ones. I love how it's so easy to make little children happy. We're going to cover the family room with balloons on Christmas morning. I think Nathan will love his foam swords and Anakin light saber. I love this time of year.
Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Give Thanks

We had some reasons to give thanks on Thanksgiving Day -- Grandma and Grandpa R. came for the holiday, we had great food, and I had the day off! Dan's folks provided the pies -- apple and pumpkin, my favorites for this holiday. I made an herb seasoned turkey and sweet potato marshmallow casserole courtesy of allrecipes.com and some crescent rolls courtesy of my Mom's recipe. We also had mashed potatoes, veggies, and classic Stove Top stuffing, and the gravy was excellent. Dan told the kids they had to have a bite of turkey, roll, carrot, and potatoes. You would have thought we'd asked them to eat a pile of spiders. Sophia was chowing down on the rolls (see her helping me to make them below), but she did NOT want the turkey, carrot, or potatoes. They finally ate teeny bits of them, and Nathan actually said it was pretty good. When we asked him if he wanted more, he said, "No!"

Can you believe he prefers "hot soup" (bean with bacon) to all the other food?! Sigh.

I had to work the day after Thanksgiving (the bank rarely closes), but Grandma and Grandpa took N and S to the Houston Zoo. The zoo is free to the public on certain days, and that was one of them. The kids had a blast. When I saw them later at night, N said to me, "I want you to take us to the zoo tomorrow!" I'm glad they had fun.

They saw all kind of animals, including this mostly black animal with zebra stripes on the back -- not sure what it is though.

They told me about a "happy elephant" that N said danced (I think he embellished a little), and I'm sad I missed out on the orangutan who chewed bubblegum and made a giant bubble.

Nathan's favorite part, however, was the train ride that circles around the outside of the zoo.

Grateful moment

I'm thankful for family. I'm talking immediate and extended family. It's times like these that make me realize how much I need and appreciate love and support from others. I want to thank all of my family and friends who are there for us.