Holiday Highlights

We had a wonderful time visiting the Rosses in Kona, Hawaii! Most of the week, Mommy and Daddy would pass Aidan off to Grandma Ross in the early dawn and go happily back to bed, while Aidan would be thrilled to play with someone who was just as excited as he was to be awake and playing that early in the morning. Grandma would play with him for a couple of hours and then pass him back to Mommy for some breakfast and a nap. Then, after everyone was more rested, we would start our day! We cooked delicious food, played fooseball (Aidan was a lucky charm and helped whoever carried him increase their winning streaks), watched Christmas movies (Mommy and Daddy especially love "Elf" and "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and "A Christmas Story"), went to beaches, and played with Aidan and introduced him to friends. It was great!

Grandma loved the early morning dates with Aidan, playing with the Christmas tree, introducing him to Triffid (our fluffy black cat), and exploring the gardens and house. Grandpa loved "gushelling" and kissing Aidan's tummy in the morning, which made him laugh and laugh. Aunt Frances had fun "flying" Aidan back and forth with Grandma, which elicited huge grins and chuckles from Aidan. Uncle Jon-Michael had fun standing Aidan up on his shoulders and giving him a tall person's view of the world. And just in general, everybody just enjoyed being with our cute little guy!

Here are some highlights from our week:
- We all helped make a delicious and beautiful gingerbread house, complete with Hersheys Hug icicles, a chocolate Santa Claus climbing down the chimney, and a Christmas tree and beauganvilia bushes in the yard
- Despite our best efforts, Aidan determinedly chowed down on sand at the beaches, which he seemed to think was delicious (it didn't seem to bother his system)
- We visited the Beljeans (Mommy's aunt and family) and Great Aunt Helen and Uncle Bill, Heather and Clarke enjoyed playing with Aidan
- On Christmas day, we fed Aidan poi! He jerked backward with a sour face each time we fed him a purple bite, but then leaned forward and opened up for more! Mommy brought six pounds of frozen poi back to NY with us afterward so Aidan could keep enjoying it!

We had a great time at Christmas, and can't wait to see the Rosses again! We'll miss you.

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