Winter Break

While the kids were off school, we did a good mix of relaxing and home and getting out for little activities and treats.  Christmas and New Years and Roy's Birthday kept us busy, too!

The weather was really warm the few days before Christmas.  One afternoon we walked to the library and then stopped at Pinkberry.

During the day on the 24th, Roy and the kids went to the playground and for Menchie's - it's their tradition and it gives me sometime at home alone to do any prep I need to do!!!

On Christmas Eve, the kids opened their new jammies and then we drove around looking at the lights.  When we got home, we set out cookies for Santa and attempted a picture of the kids in front of the tree, but Riley was FAR from cooperative!!

After the kids were in bed, we got the presents under the tree. It was the most relaxed year for me in a long time since I had NO wrapping to do!  I was very ahead of the game this year!!

And then after we went to bed, Santa came!  I forgot to take a picture of the stockings this year :(

Christmas Day started very early!  The kids were very relaxed about opening their gifts, and took time to play with and investigate what the opened before moving onto the next present.  We also stopped part way through for breakfast.  We spent the rest of the day playing with all the new presents and skyped with and call our families.

A couple days after Christmas, we spent a few hours at the zoo.  It was so warm out that we were in shorts and flip flops, but it wasn't so hot that the animals were seeking shade and hiding from the heat.  There was more animal activity that any other day we'd been there!  We saw the youngest elephant playing with hanging tire for a while, and when we took Roy to see the gorillas for his first time, the ones indoors were exceptionally active and playing, chasing, and even beating on their chests!!  When we were in the aquarium section, we saw the octopus moving all over in the tank and at one point it moved quickly so it was face to face with Riley - so freaky!!

We got tickets to a movie in our stocking, so after the weather turned super chilly, we decided a day indoors would be nice!  We walked down to the movie theater and saw the new Alvin and the Chipmunks movie.  The kids loved it - and for the first time ever, Riley didn't talk or get antsy or anxious or come to sit in my lap!

The next day we ran some errands, and while at Michael's, Riley set up a whole play scene!

Even though it wasn't very warm out, we took the kids back down to Discovery Green so they could play more on the spinning art installation.  We also found Texas' largest mistletoe while we were there!

We were invited to celebrate NYE with friends and had a super fun time. The countdown for the kids at 8 (it was midnight in Rio!) made them all super happy!  And when we got home, we gave the kids some sparking apple cider and water in champagne glasses before bed.

Hard to believe it is time to go back to school already!