Addendum to the last post

Peyton really liked his 'puter, and his Cootie game (Mommy liked that one as a little girl and was playing with him), and all of the other gifts he got...he can tell you who got him each gift. But he really likes his bean bag that Santa brought. He pushes it close to the couch and Daddy taught him to jump from the couch to the bean bag.


I just had to show you this picture:

And here is a picture of my little darling.

Visit with the So Cal Perry's

I had a quick trip to southern California after Christmas. I stopped in Simi Valley to visit some friends and then went further south to Huntington Beach. After the stormy crazy weather that we saw on Christmas morning, the weather was absolutely gorgeous the whole time I was gone. It was cold, but sunny and pretty.
I stopped to get cinammon rolls Sunday morning ans we had a little breakfast before we opened all of the presents that I had brought down from the northern California Lavezzo clan. From the moment I walked in, Peyton was talking about Santa and what he brought him and how he ate the cookies, and that the reindeer did not eat all of the reindeer food (but they might stop by later), and trains, trains, trains. He is an energizer bunny with an extra battery pack and is speaking so well that you can hold an adult conversation with him. We spent lots of time watching his electric Thomas the train going in a cardboard tunnel and pushing Sir Topham Hat around the track. Then, after Daddy finished gluing some track pieces together, we put together the polar express train and watched it go round and round. It amazes me that he can make up so many stories and have so much fun watching the train just go around in circles...what an imagination. Then we put together the wooden track with his Thomas trains. He has some extra bridges now, so they don't fit too well on the train table, so we just set the track up down the hall. And every time we went by, he warned that we should step over. One time, I had Kami in my arms and kicked it a bit. He came over and asked, "oh, no, look what happened; someone kicked the bridge over. Who did this?" I had to confess. He is now in my boys' bunk bed (the bottom half) which are sporting Spider Man sheets. He likes his bed, but still hates to go to bed.
Well, Kamdyn is doing well too. Since we saw her last at Thanksgiving, she is sitting up, eating oatmeal (sort of), and smiling and giggling constantly.
Heather and I took the kids to the park and while Peyton found some friends to play with, Kami fell asleep on my shoulder, and Mommy swapped Mommy stories with the other kids' mom. The weather was beautiful.
Since I was there, Brian and Heather took the opportunity to go to the store without the kids. There was a time...about 30 minutes...when both were asleep.
We went out to dinner and had a very nice visit. Kamdyn sat in the carseat and looked around and Peyton colored the menu with Daddy and ate all of his dinner.
It was a fun filled day...Peyton taught me a lot about trains, and we had lots of fun together.

Christmas 2008

Christmas 2008 is just about over. It was a whirlwind couple of days. So much work from so many people go into the preparations and it seems to be over so quickly. So, that is why we blog...so we can remember the events. Let's see...Christmas Eve: got a call from Ron to come over to help to make the gnocchi for that evening's dinner. Ron always love to do something traditional for Christmas Eve dinner. We have done ravioli, home made pasts, breadsticks...just to name a few. Gnocchi reminds us of Noni Dolfa and how you had to use dirty potatoes to make the dough and then roll, cut and flip. With the help of Giorgio, Caitlin, Arlene and Bob, we got them done in about an hour. They were wonderful. Noni would be so proud. We all started gathering about 4 for drinks and appetizers. It is about this time that we start remembering Dad, the chair he sat in and how he always had his picture taken with Lala Elsa and Uncle Al. When the feast was ready and we all sat down, Giorgio in his usual style said the prayer and got us started. Yummy dinner Ron and Colleen. After dishes Arlene and I played the accordions while everyone sang loudly (gratefully). Then right on cue Santa rang the doorbell...funny he usually knocks. But in he came. Giorgio and Joe sat on his lap. Aiden got closer than last year, but did not really want to have much to do with him. After we opened presents, it was off to church where we all were reminded of the real meaning of the day.

Christmas Day was a blustery day...cold, windy and raining. Joe and John were both working, so I decided to go to the movies with Ron's family, and Rick and Renee. We saw Marley and Me and I think we ALL were crying. I guess it is a good movie if it can get that reaction from all of us. A visit to Lala Jo and Poppy Al's house on the way to Arlene and Bob's for dinner was fun. Got to see cousin Joan's family.
Bob and Arlene's house was really full. Another huge but great dinner was had by all. I told Ron I felt like "saco ruto maligo" don't know how to spell it, but it means broken sack badly tied. It was a swearing phrase Dad used...not sure why it was bad, but I just felt so full.

So, I hope all of you had a wonderful couple of days too.

Christmas

We had our first family Christmas tonight at Joe and Jody's home. Since Joe and John are working on Christmas Day, we exchanged gifts tonight. Joe and Jody fixed a nice meal at a beautiful table, and invited John and Judy (Jody's parents) and Gene and Maria (Giselle's parents). After dinner we opened gifts and then had dessert. In between gifts, Aiden would grab one grandparent or another by the hand and pull us into his room to play on his bed. He had a great time with his ELMO grab bag of books, DVDs and stuffed toys, and he loved his ELMO phone, but the best toy of all was Noni's fan back that looked like a wheel. He loved that and kept pulling it out of the box. The clothes he got...weren't too interesting. Andrew didn't care much about anything. I got a digital frame, a new kitchen faucet, a standing fan, and a gift wrap thingy (not sure what to call it, but it holds ribbons, and all things you need for wrapping gifts).

Hanging out at AT&T Park

Yes, tonight I spent the evening at AT&T Park at the Genentech Holiday Party. It was a fun night for everyone involved. There were several big tents on the field representing all of the seasons and a big ferris wheel, a bullriding ring, an ice skating rink, and a rock climbing wall. There was food everywhere....and of course, drinks flowing very freely. There were several bands and dance floors set up out on the field, inside on the lower level and in the players locked garage area. Since I worked the event, I was able to go where not many people get to go. I hung out a lot in the scorekeepers' suite...that is where most of the pictures were taken. It was a really clear night, and we had no rain. It was cold, but it is December; we expected that. The night went very smoothly and a good time was had by all...even bad Santa.

Ron and Colleen - 25 years of happiness

A couple of months ago, we started planning a party for Ron and Colleen celebrating their wedding 25 years ago. Things started slowly: invitations were sent out, favors were being put together, then menus needed planning, and we needed a venue. Since Ron and Colleen's house is the most party friendly, why not use it? So a complex plan was put into effect in order to get them out of the house so that it could be prepared. That day, after Gino and Danielle got them to leave to go to lunch and a movie, the text was sent out and everyone swarmed 1102 Palm. Couches were moved into the garage, a bar was set up, memories were physically brought to the forefront as we found Colleen's dress, Ron's stetson, wedding pictures, invitation and favor. Caitlin cleaned the toilets, Giorgio hid everything in cupboards, John moved furniture, Renee set up the dining room, Bob set up the bar, Rick put the champagne glasses together, Arlene set up the dresses, and Kathy made sure that everything was as it should be. We were ready...but did they know...will we be able to pull off the surprise. Yes, we did...the caterer came at 3:30 and soon guests started arriving. At 4:20 the text came over the phone...they were turning on to 9th, then Palm...they were almost onsite. When the door was opened, Ron was wondering why Art Cole was in his house and Colleen was wondering how much dog hair was on the bathroom floor. A great time was had by everyone. Most of the wedding party was in attendance: Greg Houle, Dave Lavezzo, and Rick were the ushers who were there, the two Lindas (Colleen's sister and best friend), Kathy, and Bobbi Bazzani were the bridesmaids who were there, and Joe and Brian were the two ring bearers in the wedding. Lots of friends and most of the family were able to visit in the house and in the backyard due to the absolutely perfect weather. The toast was given by best man Rick, and Giorgio gave one of his signature funny speaches with a heartwarming touch that showed just how much he cares for his parents. As these words were being spoken, Ron and Coll were sipping champagne out of the goblets that Mom and Dad used at their 25th anniversary and Brian & Heather, Joe & Jody, Chris & Becky, and Matt & Sarah used at their weddings. Then Colleen's step Dad Jerry gave a beautiful blessing before we went to the catering table. I think that this was a fitting celebration for a wonderful day.

Thanksgiving

On Thanksgiving morning, I drove over to Joe and Jody's house for breakfast. When I got there breakfast was being prepared, Brian and Heather were meeting their newest nephew Andrew and Peyton was teaching Aiden how to climb over his bed. John and Judy were there and soon Jody's sister Carrie, her husband Paul and their children Stephanie and Brian arrived. Breakfast was delicious, the company was wonderful, and the entertainment (watching the kids play fireman and then secret agent) was most fun.

Well, we missed Dad last Thursday evening at Rick and Renee's home as we all toasted a beautiful day full of family, food and fun. Rick and Renee had the house decorated (as much as you could see with all of the tables, chairs and people), everyone brought really yummy food, Giorgio gave a beautiful toast, and all of the babies behaved as we all tried to pose them here, there and everywhere. It has been a while since we actually had everyone together for a holiday meal. Thanks for everyone for making the effort to be there: Brian, Heather, Peyton and Kamdyn from Huntington Beach, Matt, Sarah and Cheyenne from Vacaville, and Joe, Jody, Aiden, Andrew, Chris, Becky, Tyler and Haylee from across the bay had the longest way to come, and John was able to get by for dinner while on duty without having a call interupt his turkey dinner. We did get pictures of the entire newest generation, the entire next generation, and a picture of the last girl of one generation and the first of the next. Nono was watching proudly from above.