Dia De Los Muertos

We spent some time this year learning about Dia de los Muertos and remembering people and animals we love who have died. We made an altar at home and Gabriela drew pictures for it. When we asked her what she remembered about Dia de los Muertos she said it's a time to remember people you love and that every one dies.  I hope we continue to make altars and remember our loved ones in coming years.

We did some fun activities for Dia de Los Muertos also.  We went to an event at the Richmond Center for the Arts. Gabriela got her face painted (Harry Potter, of course), she decorated sugar skulls, and even made a silk screen printing on a shirt of a skull.

 The next day, we went to the Oakland Museum's Dia de los Muertos celebration. It was a much bigger scale than the day before. Auntie Cynthia and Uncle Dan joined us.  We heard some wonderful music, checked out some fancy altars, and made some masks.  There were other things to do too, like tortilla making and there were presentations and dance demonstrations, but also lots of lines which were a little overwhelming for mama and kids alike.

 We spent some time outside enjoying our picnic of snacks.  Gabriela ran into some of her homeschool buddies, and they danced and danced and danced all afternoon to the live music.  A sweet lady danced with Gabriela also.

Trick or Treating

After our Vivarium presentation, we headed up to Walnut Creek, where Auntie Cynthia lives, to do some early trick-or-treating.  The local businesses were passing out candy. It was Easton's first trick-or-treating experience, and Auntie Cynthia was delighted to be a part of it. 

It is so wonderful having her live close by. Sometimes we see her more often in a week than we would have seen her in a year, living in Boston.  I love that she is a special part of my kids' every day lives and that they are growing up making memories with her, and all her 18 aunties and uncles, for that matter.  ;)

This was the year of easy costumes.  I figure, I earned it after sewing a Glinda costume last year!  

Step 1: Gather all the pink clothes you have - shirts, pants, shoes, socks - just go for it!

Step 2: Wear multiple tutus

Step 3:  Add some fairy wings

Step 4: put lots of ribbon and barrettes in your fancy fairy hair do

Easton quickly got the hang of saying, "Trick or Treat" when he realized there was candy involved.  

He also wished everyone a "Happy 'Ween!"

 We took a break on the steps of the Arts Center for costume watching and candy eating.  I'm glad to report that the kids still appreciate and enjoy their Halloween bags I made last year.  I was hoping to make one for Baby Sister this year, while I had the materials out, but it's harder when the sewing machine isn't yet set up in your house.  Maybe next year.

For our actual Halloween festivities, Gabriela planned the entire day.  We started out with Monster Mouths for breakfast - Apple wedges with peanut butter and slivered almonds to look like teeth.  We did some afternoon trick or treating (this time as Harry Potter) and a skeleton in Alameda at the local businesses on Park Street.

Later that evening, Gabriela requested butternut squash soup for dinner, since it's orange. She also asked that we watch The Nightmare Before Christmas, with a fire, and that we make s'mores for dessert.  done and done. It was a perfect Halloween celebration. 

I was happy to skip evening trick or treating and the kids were delighted to go twice during Halloween week.

Homeschool Fun

Our poor neglected blog.  

We have been very busy, indeed. But the idea of updating months of our life at a time has been a little overwhelming.  I thought tonight that I may as well put some pregnancy insomnia to use and catch up at least a little bit. 

Back at the end of October (you know, four months ago), a mom from our homeschool group organized a presentation from the East Bay Vivarium for the kids.  The guy came to her house with loads of amazing creatures for the kids to see, touch, and learn about. He brought tarantulas, cockroaches, snakes, bigger snakes, frogs, toads, lizards, tortoises, you name it!  We have taken trips to the vivarium before, but it's just not the same as checking them out closely.

 

Why, yes, Gabriela did happily hold that awesome millipede looking creature. (Had I updated the blog right after this happened, I would have remembered more details for you.)

 I think it's safe to say that the presentation captured Gabriela's attention.

 Easton was very interested as well. I was pleasantly surprised that he was willing to touch some of the animals.  In general, he seems to appreciate animals much more when there is some distance between him and them.

 At the end, the guy brought out a monitor named "Tiny".  The kids were thoroughly amazed.

 It was a fun learning experience for us all. I am so grateful that we found our homeschool group. The parents and children are all such sweet interesting people. The kids are all Gabriela's age and there is quite the group of little 2 year old brothers for Easton to befriend. 

Christmas Recap

Here's a little recap of what I can remember from Christmas. Even though the fancy internet let me backdate my post, I am actually writing about Christmas in Mid June.  You know, like summer. yeah.  summer.

Anyway, we couldn't skip magical Christmas Tree Lane in Alameda. It was much different and required more planning living in El Sobrante.  Before, we could just put on our jackets and walk a few blocks.  It was totally worth the drive to visit again. 

 Easton knows the best place to enjoy a Christmas cookie is wrapped up in Daddy's sweater in the baby carrier.

 Gabriela brought Santa a note.  She was not convinced that this was the "real" Santa and decided, all on her own, that Santa must have some helpers since he is extra super busy just a few days before Christmas.

 We got a giant 9 or 10 foot tree since we have high vaulted ceilings.  It only took about 3,000 lights to light up this bad boy. Lane gets all the credit for spending an entire evening meticulously wrapping the lights in and out of each tree branch to get this magical look.

 Here is Gabriela with her note for Santa.

 Just a few days before Christmas, she lost her first tooth ever.  She was so excited! Thank goodness we finished our tooth fairy bag in time!

 We enjoyed many cozy Christmas time fires in our fireplace.

The kids enjoying some Christmas goodies while Daddy read them The Polar Express.  This book has an extra special place in my heart since Gabriela could recite this entire book to us, word for word, when she was only two years old. And we totally figured it out by chance one night that she could do it.

 Some of our paper snowflakes.  We were originally supposed to do one special Christmas activity every day leading up to Christmas. Unfortunately, we got super sick, all of us.  Fevers, achiness, coughs. It was really bad. We laid in bed and napped for a week. Thank goodness the kids were sick too, so we could all rest. But this didn't stop Gabriela from reminding me constantly that we were missing our Christmas activities.

 Here are Santa's cookies next to his reindeer food.  Gabriela's friend, Lucy, invited us over to make reindeer food out of carob chips, flax seed, oats, dried cranberries, and of course, lots and lots of glitter!

 We finally were able to make Christmas cookies after recovering from our two week long miserable colds.  It felt so good to get back in the Christmas spirit!

 Sometimes I get labeled as the overachiever in the family, but please take a look at Lane's snowman cookie.  He carefully selected the right colored sprinkles to craft that masterpiece of a snowman's face.

 We attempted to get some family shots of us in front of the Christmas tree.  It wasn't too successful.

 And, don't tell Santa, but after lots of requests to hug Jovie, our Christmas elf, we told the kids they could hug her on her last night before she returned to the North Pole.

 And then it was Christmas morning!  I don't know how Santa managed to fill those stockings so full!

 To say that Easton enjoyed his monster candy cane is a huge understatement.

 We couldn't believe that Santa would give so much candy to a little two year old, and didn't complain when Easton kept dropping his candy cane, causing it to break into little pieces and end up in the garbage.

 Gabriela was happy to receive her Clementine books!

 And here she is, opening those pixie dolls, that she requested from Santa. He totally came through for her!

 Lane really wanted to build Gabriela a fairy house for Christmas. He spent a lot of time looking up ideas and then settled on buying a kit so they could make the fairy house together. They spent the next two days working on that fairy house together all day long.

 Easton enjoyed some Christmas cookies for breakfast. yum yum.