Christmas in Santa Fe

We had a wonderful Christmas this year at GiGi and Grandad's house in Santa Fe.  After a very long drive, we were greeted by a winter wonderland.

Aubrey was in absolute heaven this year. She loved the snow, and was not at all deterred by the very frigid temps. She could have stayed out all day.  She went sledding and even tried her hand at snowshoeing with her Grandad.  She did great!  I was amazed at her coordination and stamina.  I'm sure she'll be ready to ski next year.  It's all she can talk about, and we probably could have given it a try this year, but it's not a cheap venture and we wanted to make sure she could handle the cold for hours on end first.  Turns out, she could handle it much better than the rest of us. 

This little guy, on the other hand, was not such a fan of the cold or the snow.

Henry was a little under the weather when we arrived, so I think his first time out in the snow colored his opinion of the whole process. He would grab his boots and hat as if he wanted to go out, but once he saw the snow bibs, that was it...

No thanks!
Maybe next year.  He did enjoy lots of love from his grandparents!

As for mom and dad, we managed to get in a day of skiing without kids and had a great time.  I love to ski and hadn't been in nearly 6 years, so it was about time. It was a little cold and the snow could have been better, but the sun came out and we managed to get in some good runs.  Sorry, no photos to document the occasion, but I do still have some sore calf muscles.

We spent Christmas Eve strolling down Canyon Rd.  It's a famous street in Santa Fe lined with art galleries. On Christmas Eve,  they close the road, put bonfires in the street, and every building is lined with farolitos (paper bags with candles inside).  It was FREEZING, but so beautiful.

Even Henry enjoyed himself. But who wouldn't if they were bundled up like this?

Aubrey was so excited for Christmas this year and couldn't stop talking about Santa.  She was so excited to leave cookies for the big man, and I'm certain Santa loved every bite.

She was not disappointed when Santa brought her what she asked for, which was a "super-hero costume and a camera."


But what I loved the most about this year was that she really understood the true meaning of Christmas.  She loves celebrating birthdays, and Jesus' was no exception!

Henry was just happy NOT to be outside. Of course, he was also thrilled with his trucks and balls. All boy.

But still so darn sweet.
Thank you GiGi and Grandad for a wonderful Christmas vacation!

Oh, and the highlight for Aubrey was a train ride with her GiGi, but I'll let her tell you about that in her own words, so stay tuned.

Baa baa baa, said the sheep

Aubrey and Henry participated in their first Christmas Chapel this year at pre-school. It was adorable. Aubrey was a sheep, and Henry rang some jingle bells. It was a great way to kick off the week before Christmas. Unfortunately, my video camera battery gave up soon after the start, but I did capture a few photos of the sheep and the bell ringer.

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas!

Gingerbread house making

Aubrey really wanted to decorate a gingerbread house this year, probably because she was dying to eat one. It was a pretty big mess, but she had a ball. Who doesn't like to lick icing?

Starlight Ballerina

Aubrey took ballet lessons this fall and danced in her first recital a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, Brian was out of town and missed the show. That meant I had to handle Henry while trying to capture the momentous occasion on film.  Not so easy.  Here are a few photos, but the real fun is on the video. Once I find the cable to connect the video camera to the computer, I'll post the video.  They danced to a song called Starlight Ballerina, and she did a great job considering the crowd of onlookers.  She loved watching the other dancers preform.  I was remiss in not giving her flowers after the show.  I honestly didn't think about it before hand, and when we got there, I saw they were selling bouquets.  I thought if I bought one then, with her right next to me, that would be a little strange.  I didn't say a word about it and I thought she might just forget about it.  OK, who am I kidding. She notices everything and I saw her studying the other girls after the show, but since she didn't say anything right away, I had hoped I was in the clear.  That night at bed, we read our stories and said our prayer. As I said goodnight and turned to leave, she says "but mommy, you forgot to give me flowers today."  UGH. Busted.

Home sweet home.

The big move.  It started with a lot of boxes, a big mess, a tired and sick mommy, and anxious kids. It has ended with a great house that is starting to feel like home. The move was harder on both kids than I imagined.  Aubrey really wanted to "go home" the first few nights.  Henry kept going outside and banging on the car door when he was tired, something I had never seen him do before. I think he wanted to "go home" too.  Since we closed on the house nearly a month before we moved in, we spent a lot of time going back and forth. I'm sure he was a little confused by it all.  By now, they both seem very happy with their new digs even though it's a work in progress.  

We just did some basic updates before moving in. New paint, new carpet in the bedrooms and hall, removed the popcorn from the ceilings, and removed about 5 layers of wallpaper from the entry, dining room and kitchen. Voila! It is a great house. It was VERY well maintained, which makes things so much easier. The yard is gorgeous and I'm praying my brown thumb will not destroy what the previous owners worked for years to maintain. Think azaleas, and LOTS of them. The pride of the neighborhood according to some. Gulp. No pressure.  We can  walk to the elementary school, the grocery, restaurants and to some of our closet friends' houses.  It's a great place to call home. Ok, so now for the part you have been waiting for... some before and after (or almost after) photos of the house.

Some exterior photos. We didn't have to change anything, except we put our furniture on the front porch, so I don't have new photos. I love the trees.

Kitchen before. It's a completely functional, 1985 update (the house was built in 72). Not much to say other than it will get completely redone when Santa leaves us the money. Come on Santa, we've been good! But for now, we disposed of the wallpaper and curtains, and added our fridge. I considered painting the cabinets, but that's a lot of work when the countertops can't be changed for a while.

during...

After...

Um, OK. just kidding. No after photos here of the kitchen. Ask me for them in 2-5 years.

Living room before. Not a fan of the blue beams or the carpet. Beams got painted, carpet will stay for now. One day... wood floors.

During... (the seagreen/rock tile has to stay, and it's growing on me. Much better now that it doesn't clash with the blue beams.)

After? Well, close. Need to hang pictures, etc.

sunroom before

sunroom after. It's the playroom now.

Master before. Great space. Not so great blue carpet

After. Silver sage on the walls and a nice sisal-like carpet. Ahhh. Now if I can just get things put away and on the walls. Oh, and the lovely ceiling fan needs a new home. Any takers?

Dining room before in all it's pink glory.

5 layers of wallpaper later...

and some Christmas cheer...

Again. Not really finished, but oh so much better.

This my friends is a close-up of our entry-way and dining room tile. At first look was was horrified, disgusted, begging for it to be taken away. Then reality set in. It's thick tile. Costly and a HUGE mess to remove. So I'm working with it. The colors are not bad. Very cottage-like, which just so happens to be a style I prefer.

I mean really, you would have felt the same way when you saw this, right?



Then I realized what made it so bad was the blue carpet at the end of the hall, the pink dining room wallpaper and the blue beams. Now, not so bad? Please disregard the red lampshade and the bright yellow corner of a painting, they don't belong there. That would have been going from bad to, well, bad.

Ok, I think I overdid it. I'm done for tonight. More soon of the kids rooms. Everyone loves to see a good old dark wood paneled bedroom turn into a nice white room, right? Stay tuned.