The Marlow Memoirs: MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

From our family to yours...

Alegria still hadn't made a peep by 7:20 this morning. Cameron, on the other hand, was wide awake and asking if we could go open presents! So to start off the festivities, Cameron found a gift from Baby Jesus waiting for him underneath our bed:

Baby Jesus must like the Giants and have high hopes for them, too!

Sporting his new beanie (which will sure come in handy in the freezing temperatures of Central Texas):

Luckily enough, shortly after, Alegria began "talking" and we knew she was awake...so off we went to get her and usher in Christmas!

Alegria is still half-asleep, so if she looks unhappy with her doll...that's NOT the case! It's just that she's still trying to wake up!

Ooo! Some more Baby Signing Time DVDs! :)

And a drum with musical instruments inside! She'll love that! Alegria always loves shaking maracas or tambourines or bells at Story Time at the library!

Then I got to open my gifts:

(I apologize that this video is sideways!)

Another present was a breadmaker!!! YAY!!! :)

And I was real excited for the gift in my stocking!

Then Cameron got to open the rest of his gifts, this one being some sort of thingamajig for his M4 rifle:

Alegria really got into unwrapping mode...she wanted to help unwrap as often as possible!

I confused Cameron with this one...he thought I'd run out of gifts and so I'd just decided to wrap up a box of cereal bars!

But no! I had bought him a couple of new ties. A few weeks ago I accidentally washed and dried one of his nice ties and ruined it...so I bought two to replace that really nice one. :)

Daddy unwrapping Alegria's gift from her to him...a gentleman's valet tray...for him to place his phone, keys, watch, change...anything, since he's always misplacing his things and searching for them all over the house! Now he's got a place for everything!

Last, but not least, Cameron also got a "gag" gift in his stocking along with some men's lotion. Recently he traded in drinking Dr. Pepper for Monster Energy drinks, so I got him a Dr. Pepper lip balm!

Now he can pretend to be a giant as he "drinks" a Dr. Pepper!

Not so easy to open...even for a giant!

Oh! We almost forgot Alegria's stocking!

Alegria with all of her presents (except for theone she opened last night...we forgot to include that one):

Daddy getting his rifle set up:

Alegria, of course, wants to help:

Daddy with all of his gifts:

Me with my gifts:

As we were cleaning up all of the wrapping paper, Alegria decided that the spatula and whisk I received along with my recipe book would make great ornaments on our tree!

Playing:

We finally got things cleaned up and had some breakfast.

However, Alegria really wanted her doll and wouldn't eat until it was sitting in her chair with her! We conceded and let her have the doll...

But I stayed close to keep her from touching the doll with her sticky hands (we were having cinnamon rolls).

Well...eventually, she wanted to touch her little baby (Who wouldn't?! It's so cute!)...so when I tried to keep her hands away from the doll, she got upset! She got so upset that instead of finishing her breakfast, she told us she was done so that she could get out of her chair and play!

"Riding" her horse:

Alegria...I don't think Hopkins (we called her little frog "Hopkins" after the little frog in the Baby Signing Time DVDs) would like to be stuffed inside the drum...

Alegria: "But Mother...he's a stuffed animal...he LIKES to be stuffed!"

If you say so!

The Little Drummer Girl:

"Come, they told me, Pa-rum-pa-pum-pum!"

And just when you think the child has beat the odds...she shows signs of the "brain damage:" (Please refer to the "Bill Cosby Himself" comedy skit.)

Like Mommy, like daughter...multitasking by holding the baby AND talking on the cell phone:

All the while Alegria was playing, Cameron was busy trying to put together the garage door opener:

It turned out that some screws were missing, so we'd have to go out and get some.

Ok, Alegria...I understand how you got the whole Hopkins/stuffed animal thing sorted out in your brain...but how in the world are YOU going to fit in there?!