Presents!

Snow Adventure!

Watch as Zahra takes a plunge into the snow covered yard.

Snowed In

It was a holly jolly Christmas here at the Seijezzalis. Santa dropped off a ton of stuff, mostly for little Z. She really enjoyed herself this time around. Z tore open presents and played all day with her choo choo, dolls and assorted other little toys.

The big gift was from above. We got hit by a major storm that brought in several inches of snow (this morning we were hit with more so we are at about 7-8 inches). Z got to play in the snow and throw snow balls! Uncle Ted and I had a chance to do something we only dreamed of growing up in Florida. We engaged in our own snow ball fight and laughed like two idiots.

Unfortunately, Grammy Lanie and Grandpa Larry got caught driving in that snowstorm so their trip was less than desirable. Still, they made it and we all enjoyed a lovely feast conjured up by Mom. It was a medley of different flavors ranging from turkey to sushi to lasagna. After eating the last piece of pie, we all fell into the living room and spoke to Grandpa Miami via Skype.

Z had a great day! Shannon and I have thought hard about what we want Christmas to mean to Z. We definitely appreciate that she had so many gifts to receive and that she is healthy and happy. But we also don't want her to get into the "Christmas" spirit of wanting toys and crap. Whatever we do, we always want to make it a time to spend time as a family.

Let the Holidays Begin!

Ahh, it's vacation time for the Seijezzalis. Shannon is done with classes and I'm done with school. Nothing to do now until January except chill out and enjoy the company. We have a few family members coming to Asheville. Uncle ted will be here today and Shan's parents will be here for Christmas. Teddy will be here for an entire week so Z will get lots of time connecting with him.

Zahra continues to grow and change. She is speaking better, though still mostly in one word sentences. She has learned a few two and three word sentences, notably "I want cake". She seems to be getting taller and weighs in at a hefty 29 pounds. She has major clothes issues as she wants to be naked all the time. This is a problem as it's been freezing up here. The tantrums can get catastrophic at times, mainly they happen in the car seat (yes, still in the less than 1% of kids who hates car seats) and when she doesn't have control. No big surprise there!

Recently she performed in her first play! The daycare program she attends put on a Christmas show. It was mainly performed by the three year old classes. When it was Zahra's turn, she was wheeled out with the other kids in these large wagons. They came on for the last two minutes of the performance and joined in on a song. Zahra was absolutely professional as she clapped, rang her bells and even sang some. I went into a little parent inner rage though. My daughter, the best performer in her group was relegated to the back of the performance! There were about 4-5 boys in front of her and they didn't know what was even going on. They picked their noses and even cried while Z performed mightily. Of course I know Z did not care but I can see how some people do lose their cool (shamefully I might add) and make a big deal about those kinds of things.

Enjoy the naked little girl at her birthday table courtesy of Granny Lanie and Grandpa Larry and her other latest pursuit; bird watching.

Birthdays, Snow and Grandmas

It has been a wild past five days!

It started Friday. I picked up my mom from the airport. Yes, my mother who had not seen Z in over 8 months. Abuelita Tere has been embroiled in a chaotic care program that has her watching over the health of her old parents. This little trip was a surprise for her as we managed to coax her into flying up her for Z's birthday weekend. That Friday was spent preparing for the big Saturday party. My mom and Z were together the whole day while Shan and I ran some errands. It was great to see my mom with Z.

Saturday started with a bang! Z was up early and ready to party. The house was prepped and in fine order as the relatives started pouring in. Aunt Julie, Uncle Harold and cousins Morgan and Emma made it in first. They were followed by Grammy Lanie and Grandpa Larry. Unfortunately, the latter group did not stay long. Larry hurt his arm pretty badly helping me cut down some trees in the backyard. He had to be rushed to the emergency room. Everyone was pretty shocked. The show went on though and soon the house was brimming with folks who wanted to visit with Z. Her friends Braden, Orien, Eddie, Liam, Juliana and Gabe showed up with their parents in tow. We ate and drank and had a merry time. Z was exhausted afterwards and crashed pretty hard. It ended up being a fabulous event in spite of the injury to grandpa.

Sunday was when the cold rolled in. We awakened to find about an inch of snow fallen outside. My mom got to experience the reality of freezing temperatures. We spent the morning trying to go places but Z was a bit hungover and had a rough start. That didn't stop us from getting lots of Christmas gifts for her and a few others. The rest of the day was spent indoors. I had to take my mom to the airport later that evening so it was a bittersweet end to a wild weekend.

Of course no one expected that Old Man Winter was going to continue to blow snow on us. We all knew it was going to be frigid but the white stuff came and for the past two days, I have enjoyed days off from work. Snow days have begun piling on us here in Asheville. While the short term fun can be relaxing, the long term effects will be stiff. I really don't want to go to Saturday school again! In the mean time, we have been stuck inside as the temps have barely risen above 26 degrees F!

For now, we hope to finish the week and get ready for the arrival of Uncle Ted in the not too distant future. Z's actual birth date is tomorrow so it should cap what has been an action packed stretch for days here at the Seijezzali residence. To think I started writing this blog almost two years ago! Our little girl is growing up and the terrible twos have already begun!