Ballesteros Christmas

The Ballesteros family is here for Christmas. It's been a great, albeit noisy, family time with all four cousins in the house. Roque's sister and her family left on New Year's Eve so we're just maxing out our time with Lola and Lolo right now. I love how active and "game" my in-laws have always been, they're so much fun in that way. We took the train downtown for lunch a few times, cooked fresh crab for dinner one night, visited the Academy of Sciences, saw the Curious George exhibit at the Jewish Art Museum, and I think Lolo is on his 56th round of Candyland.

We are thankful that they finally got to meet our Ella Joy, who, incidentally, is standing now. Changing her diaper has become an Olympic sport. I might have to dispense with the changing table. I practically pin her down while I wrestle with her poopy diaper. The moment she senses she's free, she flips over and tries to take out the table lamp. She has become quite the demanding diva in the last two weeks. She's found her voice and isn't afraid to use it. She practically scolded Lolo the other day when he tried to chat with her while she was waiting for dinner. She's developed a penchant for table food and is "poo poo"ing her homemade purees. Cheerios are her addiction. When she's waiting for her food, she strums her fingers on her high chair table. She moves quicker than her brother ever did at this age. It's amazing how different these two are. She's going to be trouble, I know it.