Navideña

Our first Christmas season in Peru...
We (okay...I) set up the tree on Thanksgiving Day - actually it was in the evening after Martha and Ian had gone to bed!  I wish I could have captured the moments when the kids saw the tree the next morning!  It got even better when they saw it with the Christmas lights turned on!  We have had some "tempting moments" concerning the tree - you know...little fingers, pretty lights, and fascinating ornaments!  We decided to make our own ornaments this year.  We have bought a few, but most of the ornaments are homemade.
This is definitely a year of firsts for us.....Martha had her first Christmas party at school, this is our first Christmas in our own house with our own tree, our first year of fun family Christmas traditions, and Martha and Ian's first Christmas program.

Martha got to hold the star - she did a great job!  Of course, the longer the program went, the lower the star got!  I just couldn't get over how "grown-up" she looked up there on the stage with all the other children!
And although you can't see him, Ian got to play the part of Baby Jesus.  One of the Peruvian girls, Sarai, carried him in and laid him in the "Pesebre" (Manger).  He laid there so still, I found it hard to believe it was MY son lying there!  I had several people ask me if it was Ian in the manger or a doll!  Oh, if he would only be that still at home!

This Sunday, we are having a "Chocolatada" with our Deaf Church in Callao.  What is a "Chocolatada"?  I guess the best way to explain it would be to call it a "Hot Chocolate Party."  The hot chocolate they make here is really yummy - it has cinnamon and cloves in it.  They eat "Paneton" (paneton is bread with dried pieces of fruit in it) with their hot chocolate.
Merry Christmas!