For me this Christmas season has flown by! I am pretty sure it was just summer. I hope you are all able to spend quality time with your family. One of my favorite parts is watching my kids open their gifts. We don’t get them much but their face of absolute pleasure is the best gift of all. Having a preschooler changes the dynamic of Christmas. It fills it with more magic and wonder. I think I recapture a little of my adolescence by seeing it through Wellington’s eyes. What is your favorite part of the Christmas season?
Putting the star on our tree
They grow up so fast so I hope you all are able to slow down and capture some of these precious moments!
Have a very Merry Christmas filled with lots of love and laughter, from my family to yours!
A couple of weeks ago we packed the kids up and drove to the doctor’s office for our 20 week ultrasound. The most important thing is that the baby is healthy! A completely healthy baby is all we really pray for.
During the ultrasound it was a bit difficult to capture the gender because of the position baby was in. However, the ultrasound tech is pretty sure and fingers crossed she is right. The kids were a bit difficult during it. Isla kept wanting to sit on my lap so my husband had to leave a few times to run off some energy.
Now enough with this talking and now to the reveal. Here is how we revealed it to our family and friends. Any guesses?
My husband put together a little interactive site, you can check it out if it is still up, otherwise I’ve included the pictures below: http://iano.co/2014-gender-announcement
Wellington wanted another Gracie (his best friend) and Isla just wants a baby to play with.
Drumroll please…
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It’s a girl! We are so excited to be welcoming a new baby girl to our family!
After leaving Santorini we took a ferry to the less-traveled island of Paros. There were fewer archaeological sites to see and we spent most of our time just experiencing the Greek way of life. We rode in on a Blue Star Ferry, which confirmed for us there is no better way to travel. It was pouring when we arrived and did so most of the next day. We were leaving the day after so we had no choice but to venture out and see the sites. Thankfully Hotel Oasis was literally steps from the port in Parikia, and we got inside during a little break in the rain before it began to pour again. The room was a little buggy, but we enjoyed the ocean view and spacious corner suite.
Luckily the rain doesn’t bother Isla
The town reminds me of the Greek island towns you picture that are white washed with painted stone streets. There was a beautiful church, the Panagia Ekatontapiliani, to stop at that had some ruins to explore. It was definitely worth seeing if you are on the island. We were some of the only people out that day due to the rain so it was relaxing time to see the city. Also, Wells really enjoyed jumping in puddles.
The sun, hope for tomorrow
There was a grocery store nearby that makes for a very picturesque walk as it follows the water. They have all the things of a typical store, though quite condensed and very busy. Also nearby were gyro stands and very good ones right by our hotel and the water. There were two right by each other so we would switch between them. We could not decide our favorite. There are bakeries on the island, too, with cheap freshly baked bread.
Our rain adventure
To see more of the island you can definitely rent a car but we chose to stay in town so we wouldn’t have the hassle of driving in a foreign country. It was a relaxing visit and on our last day there it was sunny and beautiful. We were able to walk and enjoy the beauty of the island without umbrellas once again. Luckily we had time before our ferry left in the early afternoon. Museums were free that day in Greece and we stopped in a little archealogical museum. It was a tiny museum but with some nice Greek relics. Uncharacteristically for Greece, and perhaps due to the holiday, we had a lot of freedom to explore without being hounded by museum staff.
Apparently cats don’t like rain either
After that it was time to go, but our ferry was late. Apparently that was a common situation and especially for the ferry we were taking. It was not as nice as the Blue Star ferry and very empty. I would not recommend taking this one but the timing was good for us, minus the delay.
Celebrating our first Christmas with Wellington three years ago has made me appreciate this time all over again. There is nothing like seeing this holiday through the eyes of a child to realize the wonder of it all. Since becoming a family it has always been important to me that we have and establish our own traditions. I want this holiday to be very little about the gifts and more about the time we spend as together partaking in the holiday.
On that note we have certain things that we do every year in our great city as a family. Here are a few that we have done consistently through the years and of last year we added some to the list.
1. Gingerbread Village at the Sheraton. We started this one last year. The amazing feats of art they are able to build with gingerbread is mind blowing. I am always amazed at the talent and artistry that goes into it. There is a bit of a line but if you don’t care about seeing it right up close you can circle it and get a good idea of what it looks like without waiting. However, it is worth the wait. Wellington appreciated it so much more this year, even if he did want to eat the gingerbread. Isla was a bit restless, and my husband had to stop her a few times from running up and grabbing the display!
The city of Seattle made out of GingerbreadWells and the Gingerbread display
2. The Seattle Center. We go here spspecifically for the huge train exhibit. It is free and could be where our son found his love for trains since we have been going every year since he was six months old. This one could take a while as they usually don’t want to leave. Also, in the area are ice sculptures and ice skating.
Boys and their trains at the Seattle Center
3. Candy Cane Lane in Bellevue. This one is outside of Seattle but is worth the drive. We have been going even before Wells was born. It is a free show that takes place nightly at 7pm with dancers, marching band, and ends with fake snow. If this doesn’t put you in the Christmas spirit then you really are a Scrooge. Wells appreciated it so much last year and it is worth staying up late and battling traffic. I suggest getting there early for a good spot.
Wells and daddy at Snowflake Lane in Bellevue
4. Bellevue Botanical Gardens. They do a light display called Garden d’Lights every year. There are several free nights so I would suggest going during one of those and getting there early. We usually try to do this before we head to Candy Cane Lane. The kids love the lights and they do a great job of having every space filled with lights.
5. Christmas lights. Last year we started this tradition of driving around to see the Christmas lights. There is a Candy Cane Lane by the University but West Seattle had our favorite with intricate displays sometimes set to music. Wells said his first complicated sentence there last year “the snowman is waving to Beanie in the car.”
Light display in West Seattle
6. Teddy Bear Suite at the Olympic Fairmont. Last year was our first year doing this and Wells wasn’t that into teddy bears. However, this year will be really different. He has turned a corner and is much more into teddy bears so I think he will really enjoy it. It is a nice little stop downtown. We stopped in the morning and it wasn’t busy.
7. Pike Place Market. It is definitely worth visiting here during the Christmas season. I would suggest coming later in the day so you can see it lit up with all of the Christmas lights. It has a very festive feeling this time of year.
These are a few of our favorite things to do around Seattle during the holidays. It is fun to go out and explore your city during such a magical time of year. What does your city have during the holidays?
Hopefully from the picture you were able to guess that we will be welcoming baby number three in April of 2015! The baby should be here around the end of April. None of my babies have been born early so I’m not too concerned about that. We are excited to welcome a third. Once we found out, we realized we will having three under three! Kind of crazy! It will definitely be a huge transition especially for Isla. She will have a sibling only 20 months apart in age.
As the months go on I will be posting all about new baby and mama products and preparing for number three. We have learned so much about baby products through the years. We have sold quite a few things because we have learned what is really needed and areas that are important to invest in.
I hope you will all keep reading and join us on this roller coaster journey. There will be a lot of change in 2015!
