Santa Claus is Coming to Town

Brian and I went out to Bob & Mary's this afternoon to visit everyone before the holidays and give Ava & Luke their Christmas presents. Lucky for us, we got an extra special treat because Santa was making his rounds around Aston, PA. Brian, Bob, Ava, Val and I waited, frigidly and eagerly, on the corner with all the neighbors so we could get to meet the jolly big man. Santa's helpers handed out candy canes, and when it was time for Ava to go up and tell Santa she wanted him to bring her an Ariel dress - she didn't find Santa too jolly - she screamed and cried. But, as Santa drove out of site and yelled Merry Christmas to all...Ava finally warmed up and got the last word in screaming, "Ariel dress!"

Happy Birthday Bob

To celebrate Bob's 39th birthday, we went to the Chestnut Hill Hotel for dinner. It was the perfect finish to a super fun day. Food and company were great.

Phantastic

FLYERS WIN!!!
We went to the Flyers vs. Penguins game on Saturday - club box seats - and had a blast. Not to mention the fact that the Flyers killed the Penguins and ultimately won the game 6-3 (trust me, it was never really that close). Note in bottom picture that Julie is proudly displaying her new Phillies shirt, which includes the phrase coined by Phillies Chase Utley during the parade..."World Phucking Champions."

In case you missed it, you can find it here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVIJVMZZMiQ

Making Christmas Eve Dinner

I came in to Pittsburgh for a business trip and joined in the making of our Christmas Eve dinner raviolis. I must admit that all I did was crimp only one ravioli while my cousins Kathy & Nancy, my mom, and Mary (my Aunt Tina's friend) slaved over 200 of them. Christmas Eve dinner is going to be a good one - fried shrimp and my nonnie's recipe for homemade raviolis. Can't wait!

Princess Ava

Ava is very into her Disney character dresses. She is hoping Santa brings her Ariel's dress for Christmas. As soon as Ava arrived, she asked to put on her dress with high heels and all. She ran around the house showing off how beautiful she looked.

She went through 3 costume changes, colored, ate, watched a Disney show, played with Val (see below as she was trying to paint Val's paws), and kept us on our toes. We had a lot of fun with Ava.

Luke Air Time

Luke was a joy as always this Thanksgiving. He slept, played, ate, and laughed at Uncle Brian. Eventhough he may be the youngest, he will still get the same air time on the blog. We promise Luke.

There Is No Shame in Being a Master Baster

And that is what Brian was - a master baster of turkey that is. He did it every single hour after he put in the turkey and thanks to that, it was a delicious bird. No shame.

We had a nice time with Mr. Kenney, Mary, Bob, Ava, and Luke, and we managed another successful timed family photo. While Jimmy wasn't actually here with us, Brian wore his Colorado shirt in his honor.

Brian and I would agree that we had two favorites this Thankgiving - 1) preparing the meal together & 2) eating and enjoying it with our family.