A Christmas Full of Surprises

Well, Luis surprised me with a trip to SC for Christmas, so I decided to surprise my family with my arrival in SC for Christmas. Great fun!! I called a family friend (Miss Barb) who immediately went nuts about being in on the surprise. She promptly found us a fabulous ticket (non-stop from Santiago to Atlanta), borrowed some warm clothes for Mia, and found a car seat for us to use while here, and then made the trek to Atlanta to pick us up. I have video of the look on my parent's faces when they walked into Miss Barb's house for Sunday lunch, only to find Mia & me sitting in the floor, but I'm not quite sure how to post it yet. My mother cried like I've never seen her cry, and my dad stood there speechless...It was great!! Here are some pics we've taken over the last week and a half. Memommy and Mia just after the surprise!!

Mia giving her Papa some lovin

Mia's cute Christmas Eve outfit. She looks like a candy cane!

Exploring the tree on Christmas morning.

The gorgeous dress Miss Barb got for her!!

Surprise Under the Christmas Tree!!

The other morning, I was changing Mia's diaper on the couch here in the den. In the blink of an eye, she flipped over, climbed the side of the couch and got right up under the Christmas tree! Gives all new meaning to unwrapping a gift beneath the tree! :-)

Finger-Lickin Good!!

Here's a couple of shots of Mia enjoying a bone from a nice set of baby-back ribs her daddy was eating on! Yumm-o!!

Mia Gets Stuck

Mia managed to wedge herself in between the column and the wall in our apartment. Like any good parent, I took pictures before I rescued her. :-)

Christmas Fun

A couple of weeks ago (yes, it was BEFORE Thanksgiving!!) we invited our friends, Darin and Tracy, over on a Sunday evening to decorate the Christmas tree. It was cold outside (70 degrees Farenheit or so) and rainy, so the chili we had for dinner was fantastic! We also made cookies and poppycock (is that how you spell it, Darin?) and hot chocolate and snacked on them while we listened to Christmas music and decorated the tree. It was so much fun!!

Darin putting the finishing touches on the tree.

Luis hanging out the lights on the balcony.

Tracy very graciously attempting to find that one burnt out lightbulb.

Luis giving me a kiss next to the finished product!! :-)

Unfortunately, Mia had to go to sleep before the night was over, so we still need to get a family picture next to the tree. We've got it up on top of a cabinet in the den so that Mia can't get to it without some help from us. Thanks, Darin & Tracy, for helping to make this a memorable Christmas for our family!!

How Big is Mia??

Sooooooo Biiiiiiig!!!!!!

Happy Birthday, Luis!!!

Today is my hubby's 26th birthday! In honor of this great day, I'm going to share 26 things about him that many people don't know. I hope this will help you get to know him, as many of you still haven't met him in person!!

1) He is incredibly musically gifted. He plays the piano/keyboard, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, and drums...self-taught on all of them.

2) He is incredibly artistically gifted. He can draw, paint, airbrush, and do wood carvings.

3) He has 1 sister and 1 brother. His sister lives in Miami with her family and his brother lives in Santiago, DR, with his family.

4) His nephew and niece were both born on Christmas day...one year apart.

5) He loves to sing and rap. Oh, did I mention that he writes music, too?? Yep, he does!!

6) His dad is a pastor of two churches.

7) He likes to wear big, baggy clothes...the "gangsta" look. I must interject here, though, that he looks very presentable and nice. He wears a belt...so he's not always trying to hold up his pants with one hand. This small thing (the belt) makes certain members of my family happy, but I won't mention their names here.

8) He is obsessed with his hair. He has these beautiful ringlets that frame his face, and it is absolutely gorgeous. Obsessed is the only word I know to describe it....he honestly takes longer than I do to get ready to go out.

9) We call him the "slash" guy at work. He works for TEARS as the construction/maintenance/messenger/PR/translator/gopher guy.

10) He now loves Dr. Pepper (thanks to yours truly). It's not sold here in the DR, but we occasionally find it in some random, hole-in-the-wall place....or someone ships some to us. On those rare occasions when it is actually present in our home, it is a fight to see who will drink it!! In the meantime, our Dr. Pepper-flavored Jelly Bellies sustain us! :-)

11) He cooks an AMAZING spaghetti sauce that melts in your mouth!!

12) He hates to read (in his words, "I strongly dislike it.")

13) He learned to speak English by watching TV. Among his favorite English shows? Friends, Everybody Loves Raymond, House, and the Cosby Show.

14) He doesn't like sweets very much. They make his teeth hurt.

15) His current toothbrush is blue and white.

16) He likes to play Scrabble (preferably in Spanish).

17) He LOVES to work puzzles.

18) His favorite foods include tacos, fajitas, and chili.

19) His favorite Bible verse is Romans 8:28.

20) He eats corn on his hot dogs (a very common thing here in the DR).

21) When he drinks coffee in the morning, he likes it with milk and sugar. When he drinks it in the afternoon, he likes it with sugar only.

22) He likes science fiction movies and shows.

23) He loves computers and anything that has to do with graphics on the computer. PhotoShop, AfterEffects, Premier, etc.

24) He likes to match his clothes...hat, shirt, shoes, etc....this is all part of the "gangsta" look (refer to #7). My friend, Joy, calls this "matchy, matchy, poo-poo" and that makes me laugh!!!! :-)

25) He has a very strong sense of taste. He can tell you all the ingredients of any food he puts in his mouth.

26) He likes country music!!!!! yay!!! He once wrote me a country song (available in stores: July 3020).

And one to grow on: in his own words, "I love my girls more than life itself!"

Happy Birthday, Baby! I love you!!!!!

Fun In a Box

Who said you have to spend lots of money on toys for kids??? Random household items are always Mia's favorites! Like this box, for instance....