Santa at Treelighting

We went (for the first time) to the lighting of the big christmas tree in downtown Tacoma on Saturday night.  There was a very big crowd there but ,amazingly, we right away ran into August's friend Alex there (and Alex's two siblings and Grandma).  Alex had been Auggie's best friend at school until he moved away a few months ago, so the two were very excited to see each other again.

 Alex and Auggie watching the treelighting.

Santa also made a special appearance at the event, and afterward the kids each got a chance to sit on his lap and tell him what they wanted for Christmas.

Halloween and the Day of the Dead

Here's the kids getting ready to head out for trick or treating this year.

Rose is a "Princess Witch", a compromise worked out with Mommy, while August is a "Trash Monster", an idea he came up with on his own.

In this one, Auggie is holding up the "tail" of cans that dragged on the ground behind him.  The noise from this was unfortunately too much for the dog to handle.

On Friday we had a "Day of the Dead" remembrance in our living room.  This is the altar we built like the ones they make in Mexico (well, kind of) to remember people we know who have died in the past year and deceased relatives we want to continue to keep in our hearts.  We mentioned each person by name and sang  a few songs.  It was a lovely ritual and I think the kids were old enough to "get it" now.