Birthday recovery, Christmas, Christmas recovery

2010-01-04
Handmade stockings by Alice, to be hung by the chimney with care
The awesome "pup tent" from Grandma and Papa. He's already asking if he can go camping in the backyard when it gets warmer
Aaarrrgghhh
He's got a little growing to do, but he approved the sweatshirt from Aunt "One-Track Mind" Sara
I was overdue for a foot injury, so how about a broken toe a few hours before Davd's birthday party, hmm?! And apparently I was overdue for a pedicure, too. Don't mind the paint job. I got it fixed
Thank goodness for airports and airport traffic. We no longer have to be the absolute last people on the plane for fear of having to sit any longer than absolutely necessary. He actually <i>likes</i> sitting there, watching stuff. Even if it is at the crack of dawn
One good thing about leaving at an ungodly hour: getting to see a real, true sunrise
Team Hansen post-Christmas Eve service
Would have been nice to get a classy family portrait without the M&M truck in his hand, but you take what you can get
Sprinkling some "reindeer food" (read: birdseed) on the driveway in preparation for landing
After some searching, he finally found the baby Jesus hiding
Proper Nativity placement
Ringing the bells to let Santa know that the cookies and carrots were out, he was going to bed, and Santa could go ahead and stop by any time now, thank you
...and commence mayhem and wrapping paper bits
Perhaps his favorite gift from Grandma and Papa, David shows off his new longhorn. Originally we called it by its proper name (Bevo), but it has since been renamed Aslyn B'Zazzlyn. I'm guessing on the spelling there. This is the first animal he has ever named, and that's the name he chose?
Alice goes for a tribal African look while showing off her new chip clips
You get no presents until you tell me what these letters are
Nothing says "Texas" like multiple visits to the playground. At least he was still in the Christmas spirit
Can't you just hear the digger sounds he's making?
Yet one more playground implement that would Make Mommy Barf. She's no fun at the playground
Getting a little boost from Papa, who proudly sports both holiday and Longhorn pride
So, he gets to the top, looks straight at us, and says, ""This is dangerous, right?"
The old metal slides are so much faster than the newer plastic ones, especially if you're about to get clotheslined by your grandfather
The little blue wagon: built to last
This should indicate that Mommy wasn't at the playground when these pictures were being taken. Otherwise someone would have gotten yelled at
About 15 seconds later, David launched himself out of the swing and fell flat on the ground. He was totally unhurt, so we laughed at him. A lot
After 6pm on December 25th, it's Happy Birthday Alice time!
David helps Grandma blow out the candles on her slab of birthday icing. Note the crumbs of breading underneath (aka "cupcakes"). Also note the compressed edge facing the camera, the result of slamming on the brakes in the store parking lot because some joker didn't look before backing
This was so not the most disgusting he got while eating these things
A little quiet reading before breakfast
Look into his eyes... he so knows we know he knows he's being gross
An ever-growing collection of suncatchers from Emily. At least they prevent the birds from flying into the window
This was <i>ice</i> in the birdbath. In <i>Texas</i>. I want a refund
The week's great adventure: riding a city bus for 45 minutes just so David could ride a city bus. He enjoyed looking at the map, even if his expression seems to say "I think we just went past Chuy's!"
I'm guessing this is not what Alice and Paul had in mind when we said "fun outing", but they were good sports
David was far more interested in his lemonade than he was in posing by the Velvet Elvis shrine at Chuy's. Mmmm, Chuy's...
Zilker Park has the best playground! The seat by the steering wheel of the old fire truck has been worn smooth from so many kids sitting there for the past 30+ years
Trying to keep his footing on "Nana's Corkscrew"
David hangs on as he slides along, but the best part is the guy in the background who Photobomed us. We especially liked his sweatshirt, which screamed of "My grandkids made this for me and I only have to wear it in public until they go home."
I'm not sure who the biggest dork is: the guy trying to teach a four-year-old how to read a map, the girl trying to take a picture of it, or the guy taking a picture of the girl taking a picture of the guy with the map. At least we're all in the same boat.
A view from underneath the tree at Zilker Park. If you squint, you can see the yellow spirals the lights make
The tradition is to go underneath it and spin around
if you're Mommy, This is what you get when you spin around. Or, you get the feeling that you're (surprise!) going to either fall down or throw up
Chris got to relive his childhood memories and did some Spinning Duty with David
Sarah Martin, this is for you
37th St in Austin traditionally boasts some crazy light displays. Though many houses didn't have their lights on when we walked down, there were still plenty of homes to gawk at
Oh, it's be-yoooooo-ti-ful
Nothing says "O Holy Night" like a Nativity scene done in pink flamingos
Such a glamorous pose in front of the Littlefield Fountain at UT
Monday we hiked up Mount Bonnell and found some nature
You can see why Emily needed to keep a hand on him.
This is about as high up as he can get: standing on a table at the top of a mountain, getting a boost from your six-foot-tall mother
Descent
Dissent
Some of us are a little more nimble than others. I'm not naming names
Good thing we were "hiking" and he could get some of his ya-yas out. It was either the fresh air or the pineapple-orange juice, but something made this kid crazy
It's really quite a shame we didn't have a better view
Why is it so much fun to hit stuff with sticks?
Hey, look! A pile of dirt! Let's climb in it!
Dinner at Donn's. David was so excited to have ribs, but they wouldn't give him ribs on a child's plate. At least their sausage was awesome
Down the hatch
I think he tried on every one of Papa's hats
Craning his neck to see his own reflection in the window. Is it bad that he knows we think he's so cute?
He tries grilling in the "Mi Familia" exhibit at the Austin Children's Museum. This exhibit is based on the artwork of Carmen Lomas Garza, a Texas artist whose work is frequently used in VTS (Emily's thing at work). Next time, though, Dude, can you not use your hands on the steak?
Helping "la familia" make tamales
Hanging upside-down like the bats under the Congree Avenue bridge in the summertime
After conquering the puzzle on the right, Alice, Emily, and Chris (with occasional help from Paul and even more "help" from David) decided to try the tropical birds, too
"Can I watch a movie?" How about now? Can I watch a movie now? Hey, can I watch a movie now?
It's apparently a toss-up between the Legos, the pirate ship, and the Transformers scooter as to which was his favorite Christmas gift
He's finally getting the hang of spreading the ornaments out on the tree and not hanging them all in the same small area
Chris cuddles with our three favorite Dirty Blondes on NYE. This may have been the only time the entire evening that David, Jake, and Toby were all still at the same time. And it didn't last long, trust me
Left hand red, left foot yellow, right foot green. Twister would go a lot more smoothly if he was 100% with left vs. right