Christmas, Part One!

So many fantastic days in our trip Home for the Holidays that I need to keep ahead of myself with all of these memories---here are (some of) the highlights from the first half of our blissfully happy Christmas in the US!

Before we left Guyana, though, the Big Guy came to visit at Norah's preschool. I put Kata in her matching Christmas dress, took her down to the school to pop in and witness the great event. This is the look I found on Norah's face when we arrived:



She never warmed to the poor guy, but eventually we were able to take this classic Santa shot...



One of the first things we did when we got to Tennessee was take sweet Norah to see the Nutcracker. She could not have been more excited and now almost daily wears her leotard and insists we call her "Sugar Plum Fairy." An improvement over her initial confusion during which she called it the "Plumber Fairy." Here we are before the show.



My brother and sister came to Chattanooga as well in the week before Christmas.

Cousins, already out drinking together.



Kata, her double ear infection, and Charlie.



Then it was on to Birmingham to visit with Nana, pick up Patrick at the airport, and keep driving South to Pensacola.

Nana and her adoring fanclub:



Norah blinded by all the glitz and glitter in Nana's infamous jewelry drawers!



And here we are for Christmas with the Henrys in Florida! Norah started her shell collection on Christmas Eve with her Aunts Bridget and Lori.



A treasure.



Time on the beach means trying to keep Kata from diving into the ocean. Little Miss "I loose interest in the Pegasus Pool after five minutes" seems to be focused ONLY on swimming in the Gulf of Mexico. In December.



Run, run, run in the sand!



Finally got her headed in the other direction.



Two happy girls.



Christmas morning! Serious present-opening focus on display.



Christmas cuteness perfection.



With Aunt Bridget, getting serious about Rapunzel Barbie and her wardrobe.



At one point Kata got overwhelmed and started kicking all of the presents away from her. I pulled her up out of her two foot-high pile, and she found a quiet spot on my lap to play with her cat keyboard. Because nothing says tranquility like a meowing cat keyboard.



After church, family portrait on the balcony.



Time for brunch and some Dora the Explorer walkie-talkies with Aunt Lori.



Christmas night, watching Frosty the Snowman with Dad.
Bliss.

Big Thanks!

We had a really wonderful, really big Thanksgiving Day celebration last week. Our good friends Dave and Christine hosted six families at their home for lots of turkey, lots of dressing, lots of pie and lots of playtime. We all had so much fun, and we all passed out in a proper food coma Thursday night. Perfection.


Thanksgiving at its best (well, missing our families of course...)-- good friends and football.



Kata conquering the indoor swingset-- you'd want your swingset indoors if you had this kind of sun, too.



The big kids' table:



The adult/baby table. Norah made Kata's pilgrim hat place card:



Ready to eat! Kata beginning to eat her weight in turkey...



Because as soon as she was released from her high chair, she took advantage of abandoned plates on the kid's table.



The scene: happy eaters.



The chitlins.

All by myself!

Greeeeeeeeeat....Kata now believes she can dress herself.



Our morning routine just got a LOT more complicated.

Right-hand woman

Just got a really great picture that I had to share. It really shows the love and affection we all have for Sharon. What will we ever do without her?!?

Halloween 2011

For the second year, we managed to have a blast on Halloween, despite being in a country where it is not really celebrated. Take a look at all of the fun that Norah and Kata had!

It started with costume day at Learning Tree Preschool. Norah is in costume number one for this: ballerina.



Big girls working hard at school. Notice that Kata thinks she is one of them.



Then, as the excitement began to build for trick-or-treating, Norah put together costume number two at home. In-promptu witch.



Party time! I helped organize a Halloween party/ Trick-or-treating session for the American community in Georgetown. We used the compound of five houses owned by the US Embassy to stage a real neighborhood-feeling trick-or-treating event! Here is costume number three: ballerina ladybug, and her trusty sidekick bumblebee.



Ballerina Ladybug can hardly contain her excitement...



...and Bumblebee actually forgot those things were on her head long enough for me to take a few pictures!



We played games like pin the bow tie on Mr. Bones!



Patrick chased Bumblebee and relaxed with friends.



Norah bobbed for apples (sort-of). She really waited until everyone had had a turn at which point I let her reach in and grab one with her hands. I don't think Ballerina Ladybugs like to get their faces wet.



Ghostly bowling!



Bumblebee really thinks someone is going to tell her she isn't allowed to do this...



The crew.



Off to trick-or-treat some more.



Dipping in to her stash. Happy Halloween!!!

Pink, please

In case there was ever any doubt, we have recently seen proof that Kata is in fact, a girl. A girly girl.



It helps to have a big sister who's every move you live to imitate...but I'd just like to point out that this little outfit was put together while Norah was at school. Silk dresses and barbie dolls and jewelry. A little pink, anyone?

Pony ride, take two

Friday the ponies made another appearance at a friend's birthday party! Kata would not let herself be excluded this time, and Norah was more than willing to scoot back and hold her sister tightly.

Kata does not want any assistance, though...didn't want Norah's hands on her at all.



FUN!

The third coolest country in the world!

I saw a sign in the Kingston airport that proudly advertised Jamaica as "The Third Coolest Country in the World!" Apparently only slightly less cool than Brazil and Singapore, we had a fantastic, and very cool four days in Jamaica last week.

We flew from Guyana to Trinidad to Barbados to Jamaica. On the same airplane. We weren't allowed to deplane at each stop, so the girls coped by chasing each other up and down the aisle and having tickle wars.



Until there had been enough of that.



We got to Jamaica late Saturday and went straight up to Ocho Rios for two days on the beach. Sunday was cloudy all day, but that did no stop us from enjoying the beautiful beach..





...or the great kiddie pool at our condo. Really Norah is laughing because that water was very cold. I was happy to stay out and be photographer.



Patrick wins dad of the year for staying in that cold pool with them.



Kata just being Kata. Waving at her adoring fans.



Monday, we woke up to bright, sunny skies..and this. Needless to say Ocho Rios was a very different place the day the cruise ship unloaded.



Amazingly though, the beach never got too crowded. Happily for us, it seems the cruise shippers were more interested in shopping in town.



The girls spent the morning running back and forth between playing in the sand



and swimming in the clear, calm water. Beautiful!



Monday afternoon-- Ocho Rios to Kingston.



Tuesday Patrick attended a conference at our hotel (the whole inspiration for the trip in the first place) and we were left to entertain ourselves. Norah enjoyed the hotel pool, while I enjoyed (?) chasing Kata from the pool steps to the koi pond to the pool steps to the koi pond to the pool chairs to the pool steps to the koi pond...



Norah was a big hit parading through the hotel lobby with her Jamaica flag.



A highlight was Tuesday afternoon when we got to visit with friends! Andrea and Laura used to live here in Georgetown but were relocated to Kingston in March. We had such a fun time playing and catching up!



Not bad, Jamaica. Not bad at all.