A Day at Explora!

The Saturday after Christmas we took the kids to Explora (Albuquerque's children's museum) to try and let the kids use up some of their over-abundant energy.

Kyle, Peter, and Laura really enjoyed the Rube-Goldberg machine. 

Uncle Erik helped Kyle and Emily make a marble delivery contraption.

I just love Laura's expression as she watched the jet of water for the fountain change as she pushed the button. (Uncle Erik, Aunt Xin, and Kyle looking on.)

Building a huge dam to see if they can stop the oncoming flood.

The kids were able to build their own sail-cars.

It was a fun time and lots of energy was expended!

*** I met my goal! I blogged every day this month! Let's see how I do with my New Year Resolutions!***

Such logic!

I struggle every day to get Peter and Laura to wear socks. 

Today I said to Peter (who was barefoot as always), "Don't your feet feel cold? I've got on socks and slippers and my feet are still cold."

Here's his classic response: "My feet aren't cold because I just let them get numb and then I don't feel anything."

Playing on the Wii

The Wii had been absent from our house for 3 months, but it made a miraculous reappearance when cousin Kyle came to visit for Christmas. Here's a video of the cousins playing Wii Sports (bowling) on Christmas morning.

My kids were especially excited to get to play Wii Sports again, as we accidentally returned ours to a game rental shop and it was destroyed before we realized it was missing.

I've searched online and at our local Game Stop and can't find a replacement. (That's not entirely true - I found a used one on Amazon for over $60 - I don't think so!!!)

Paris - Our Hotel

Well, I was going to post the video of our hotel, but it wouldn't load and it would have been sideways. 

Does anyone know how to rotate video footage?

My Best Friend

Let me introduce you to my current best friend... my dishwasher!

With family in town for Christmas, I've been cooking up a storm and getting every dish in the house dirty. We've averaged 3 loads a day. Can you imagine how much work it would have been to wash all of those dishes by hand?! And what if I had had to go down to the river to get water and then had to haul it back home and heat it up over a fire and make my own soap and so on and so on?! Thank heavens for modern conveniences!

Christmas Day

Christmas morning at the Solis home.

Lots of gifts. Lots of family. Lots of fun.

My favorite gift - framed postcards from our trip to Paris.

(Sorry, dad - the blender is awesome but it's not Paris!)

Peter and Laura tearing into their gifts.

Emily holds Felicia while Kyle opens a gift.

Shad rejoices in receiving a new iPod (thanks Dad!)

Christmas Eve

After setting our luminarias out, we went down to the Natural History Museum to be chased by a T-Rex!

We waited for 1 hour and 5 minutes for a table at Little Anita's in Old Town (after being told the wait should be 20 to 25 minutes).

Then we waited another 30 minutes to actually get food.

We did all of that waiting so that we could have a "good" parking spot for walking around Old Town and seeing all of the luminarias. (For those of you not familiar with Albuquerque, Old Town is the oldest part of Albuquerque - where the city actually started.)

All bundled up and having fun 

(now that we finally have food in our bellies)!

Hoping the real Santa brings great gifts.

He did, but you'll have to wait until tomorrow to see them. 

I'm tired. 

A Christmas Tradition You Will Only Find in New Mexico

Where else would people think to use paper bags as Christmas decorations?!

Every Christmas Eve, our family makes luminarias.

You take paper lunch bags and fold down the top twice 

(so that the top can't fold in on itself and catch fire).

Then you put sand in the bag, to weight it 

down so the wind can't carry the bag away.

Peter and his cousin Kyle enjoyed playing with the dirt, 

while Aunt Xin and Uncle Erik (the headless one) 

kept them supplied with plenty of bags.

Then you line the bags along your sidewalk and driveway.

Here's Laura putting candles in each bag.

Kyle helped, too.

Peter was in on the act as well.

This is what it looks like when you've lined all the luminarias up.

Now, you may be asking yourself, 

why in the world would anyone do this?

To light the way for the Christ-child to come.

They're actually really pretty when they're lit 

(though difficult to photograph).

Merry Christmas everyone!

May Christ find His way into your home and heart.

Bird Dog

We are bird-sitting Opus - the Acton's lovebird 

while they're in Utah for the holidays.

Opus is a sweet bird and we like having him here. 

But there's one member of our family 

who is especially enamored of this bird...

our dog, Felicia!

Felicia will sit and watch Opus. 

She will try to jump on the piano to get at Opus. 

She will bark at Opus.

Several months ago we took Felicia to a local park. There were swallows flying low over the grass and Felicia went nuts chasing them and trying to catch them.

Were cocker spaniels bred to be bird dogs? 

The Stockings Were Hung...

We're just about ready for Christmas.

We finally got all of our Christmas decorations up last Friday, 6 days before Christmas! We were cutting things a little close, but they're up now and that's what matters. 

We started wrapping gifts tonight. I had one Christmas Eve about 3 or 4 years ago where I was up until 2:00 a.m. Christmas morning wrapping gifts. I vowed I'd never let that happen again, and I haven't.

I got most of my grocery shopping done today. Of course, I forgot a couple of things, so I'll have to brave Wal-mart again tomorrow. Darn it!

Paris - Day 2, Notre Dame

Day 2 in Paris didn't have the best start. We had set our alarm to wake us at 7:30 so that we could get an early start to the day. At 9:00 a.m. Shad and I wake up to loud pounding on our hotel room door. It turns out that even though Shad had switched the time on his watch to Paris time (it holds two different time zones), he had not "told" the alarm to recognize the Paris time. You've never seen two people get ready so quickly! We didn't want to waste a single second in Paris.

After grabbing some croissants for breakfast at the neighborhood boulangerie, we headed off to Notre Dame Cathedral.

We crossed the famous Pont Neuf - the oldest surviving bridge in Paris - to get to the Ile de la Cite (that e should have an accent over it, but I don't know how to do that). The island is pronounced Eel de la See-tay. It was the birthplace of Paris.

Notre Dame Cathedral

Looking up at the ceiling inside

One of the famous Rose Windows

Shad being watched over by some saints 

at the entryway to the cathedral

We stood in line for 15 minutes (it was freezing!!!) 

to be able to get a gargoyle's view of Paris.

We climbed 400 stairs to reach the top. After the 668 stairs we climbed the day before at the Eiffel Tower (really it was 1,336 since we also had to climb down), we were pretty tired of stairs!!!

Me, my sister (in the brown coat), and Shad (in the red coat) admiring the amazing view

The golden domed building is where Napoleon is buried

We climbed the bell tower to see one of the famous bells Quasimodo might have rang. Each of the bells at Notre Dame has a name, but I can't remember its name or find it online.

(Julie remembered - the bell's name is Emmanuel.)

My brother-in-law Chris

The gargoyles that scared away evil spirits 

and acted as waterspouts in the rain

Looking down on the flying buttresses

Here kitty, kitty - it's lunch time!

Another view of the flying buttresses

Another amazing site I never thought I'd get to see in person. It was like I was in a dream. It didn't feel like I was really there (except for when my calves were burning from climbing those 400 stairs - and then having to climb back down them - that felt real).

Christmas Cards

I finally got all of our Christmas cards out. We had a heck of a time trying to take a family picture.

Here's one of our favorites that you won't be seeing in our card!

Caroling

We had a ward caroling party tonight. I love singing Christmas carols. I'm grateful for the power of good music. 

Here are some of my favorite Christmas carols:

• O Holy Night - I adore this song, but alas, I do not have the vocal range to be able to hit those high notes.

• Ave Maria - Another song I can't actually sing because it gets too high.

• What Child is This?

• Do You Hear What I Hear? - I remember singing this with my elementary school choir when I was in 5th or 6th grade. My favorite version is Bing Crosby's.

• I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day - This carol probably isn't all that popular, but I love the message "God is not dead, nor doth He sleep." I love the fact that it was written during the Civil War, reminding us that no matter how bad things may seem God does not abandon us. Right will prevail!

I'm sure I've forgotten some; there really are too many to mention every single one of my favorites. It was great to go caroling tonight and sing Christmas carols with my kids. I was proud to see that they knew almost all of the words to all of the songs we sang.

***What's your favorite Christmas carol?***

Art and Poetry

Every year, Family School puts on a huge school event. Each class spends at least a month working on art and poetry to display.

Here are the things the kids had out for Art and Poetry last night.

Emily's framed weaving

Emily arranged this poem on the paper so that its layout matched the subject of the poem. 

See if you can figure out what she was trying to show.

Cooking, Celebration by Emily Solis

Cooking dinner

Aromas, amazing

Carrots being chopped

Cooking, calming

Water boiling

Basil, brightening

Meat being chopped

Cooking, chaos

Bacon popping while cooking

Dicing, diverting

Cake being frosted

Cooking, concentration

Oven beeping

Mixing, masterful

Cookies being cut

Cooking, collaboration

Bread being thinly sliced

Fruit, filling

Vegetables being popped into soup

Cooking, celebration

(Did you figure out that the shape of the poem mimics aromas wafting up from a pot?)

Emily's vase with origami bamboo. 

The chinese character means friendship.

Emily's paper lantern with Sumi-E painting

Spring Joy  by Emily Solis

Butterflies caressing

Blossoms flowing

Fingers brushing

Against my cheek

My attitude meek

Attempting to climb the peak

Jumping the creek

Smiles sweet

Emily's nesting dolls

Emily's owl

A casting of Emily's hand, holding a book she made to represent something that she holds dear and wants to "protect" for the future

Hands  by Emily Solis

With this hand I will teach

The world the supreme knowledge

With this hand I will pull along

Minds till they soar with glee

With this hand I will inspire

The wisdom in their minds

With this hand I will

Teach the child to read

With this hand I will write

To the world and you

With this hand I will lend

My mind to another through words

With this hand I will pull

The strings of their minds

With this hand I will

Teach the child to write

With this hand I will give

The knowledge I have

With this hand I will drive

Their minds to wisdom

With this hand I will give them intelligence

With this hand a whole new world

With this hand knowledge will flourish

With this hand, 

I will change the world

But I am not the

Only One

Emily's freehand drawing of the mouse from one of her favorite childhood books, "The Little Mouse, The Big, Hungry Bear and The Red, Ripe Strawberry" (I know you're supposed to underline book titles, but I can't figure out how to do that in my blog.)

Peter's blue truck with the rooster in the back, 

made with cray pas (oil pastels)

Peter's "Arms Up" figure

I'm Leaping for...

by Peter Solis

I'm bounding for 3rd grade. 

I'm extending for division.

I'm ascending for perfection.

I will know that I have made it when I have passed multiplication, passed 2nd grade,

and worked real hard on school.

The children painted with watercolors to imitate 

a master (Dee Sanchez)

Peter's is on top, Laura's is on the bottom

Laura's papier mache teapot

Laura's teapot poem 

(a spin off of the children's song "I'm a little teapot")

The Tremendous Teapot

I'm a tremendous teapot,

Pink and blue.

Here is my handle.

Here is my bow.

When I get all smoky,

Puffy and gray,

Pour my tea out

And have a good day!

Peter's papier mache teapot

The Immense Teapot by Peter Solis

I'm an immense teapot, bright and great.

Here is my lamp.

Here is my spout.

When I get all steamy, hear me say,

"Come and pour me before you fly away!"

Laura's cray pas of a horse

Laura's arms up figure

Arms Up  by Laura Solis

I am standing up for making my lunch.

I am bending to my toys.

I am cheering to go to Putt Putt.

I am dancing for joy.

I am laughing because of Peter.

I know when I have made it when I can play with my brother.

Each class works on a collaborative piece to auction off as a fundraiser for the FTO (like PTA, but for the entire family). Peter's and Laura's class drew bugs on a bookshelf for the auction. 

(I bid on the shelf, but lost out at the very end. 

Someone waited until we left and then outbid me!)

Here is Laura's bed bug.

Peter's butterfly on the bookshelf

This year Peter and Laura had to do an art inquiry (sort of like a science fair project, but doesn't have to be about science). They investigated patterns in the use of colors in religious vs. 

non-religious stained glass windows. 

They each had to produce an art piece 

at the end of their inquiry.

Laura represented the religious side with this 

"stained glass window" of a lion and a lamb

Peter's window represented the non-religious 

windows they investigated

Not sure what the name of this art piece is. 

Peter suggested "Haiku hanger." 

Each paper has a haiku on it. 

This is Laura's.

One of Laura's haikus:

Horse in the forest

searching for food

green, green grass

This is Peter's haiku hanger

One of Peter's haikus:

Books are so awesome

I like to read Percy Jackson

Do you like books, too?

This year the parents got to start an art project 

that the children finished. 

I folded these origami ornament/books. 

The kids wrote an Ode to their favorite thing and put it inside with a picture of them with that favorite thing.

Are you surprised that Laura picked her blankie? (Maybe her teacher didn't think Laura's belly button would make an appropriate picture.)

Ode to Blankey by Laura Solis

Ode to Blankey, you are my favorite.

I take you everywhere I go.

Splashed with pink flowers,

Comfy on my bee-boo,

Cuddly, nice, and warm.

Perhaps Laura was following in Peter's footsteps. 

Everyone knows that Peter loves that blankie!

Ode to "Blankey" by Peter Solis

Blankey, I've loved you, since I was born.

The second I saw you I felt sunny inside,

As a dog in front of the sun.

And you made me smile for a while.

Blankey, you're so awesome.

You are so delicate and so good.

Ode to the BLANKEY

You are as soft as a lion's fur coat.

I adore you, Blankey.

Ode to the Blankey.

I admire you my silky and pulpy Blankey.

One of the parents came in and taught the children how to make prints. 

This one is Laura's. 

(I don't have a picture of Peter's because they made so many prints that he couldn't remember which one he actually picked to display.)

Laura's clay origami crane ornament

Peter's clay origami crane ornament