Family Day at Dance Class

Our little pumpkin had her first "family day" at dance class.  This is a little parks and rec ballet/tap class that she takes at the rec center at the end of our street (uber-convenient!).  She loves this!  They do 20 minutes of tap and 20 minutes of ballet.  At the last class, the parents were invited in to see what the kids had learned.  It was adorable on so many levels!  She is in this class again this winter session so we'll see if she learns anything new or if it is simply a repeat from the fall.  Either way, she loves going and her teacher Miss Angela is very good with the room full of little dancers!

Company Christmas Party

 On our way into the holiday party at the Mayflower Hotel in D.C.

 You cannot tell this picture was taken on a green screen can you?  This was one of the least ridiculous of the options.

 One of the best parts of living here is having a great group of friends to hang with! 

We couldn't have had a better time at this year's holiday party!  A million thanks to Jackie and Scott, who live down the street from the hotel, for hosting Alex and Abby for a sleepover.  We have made so many great friends here at the Fairfax office, and reconnected with many from our time in Houston as well. 

Allergies

Poor Alex, bored again, in a doctor's office.  Those wonderfully mild temperatures do nothing to help the allergies in this family! 

A Warm Blast

The same day of the White House tour, the temperatures were very mild.  Alex and Abby were eager to play outside after school.  They enjoy riding bicycles in the cul-de-sac across the street.  There is a decent hill on the way down, which they both love, but the climb back up is a slow one for Abby.  Much to my surprise, Alex stopped his bike and ran back down to give Abby a big push up the hill.  Warmed my heart!



Holiday Tour

 I was such a tourist on this tour, snapping pictures left and right.

 Bo, the first family's dog, made out of pom-poms this year.  I heard that last year's mock up of Bo was crotcheted out of pipe cleaners...an extremely time-consuming task for the many volunteers!

 This tree was adorned with blown glass ornaments, but from a distance looks like water balloons.  It was gorgeous!

 Amie and I in the East Room.  Note the portraits of George and Martha Washington on the wall behind us.

 This tree was a tribute to the armed services in the aptly named, Blue Room.

 The State Dining Room

 Gingerbread House

 So many living decorations here in the Green Room.

Wow!  This was a very special December treat!  Touring the White House in all its holiday glory was just awesome.  The smell of fresh greenery immediately put us in the holiday mood.  I loved walking the halls of the White House, looking at the framed family photos on the walls from years past, admiring presidential portraits, appreciating the time it took to hang so much garland and trim so many trees!  I could not be more appreciative of the opportunity to take this tour.  Taking in the history and beauty of the White House, especially at Christmas, is something I will never forget!

Deck the Halls

Decorating the tree on a Friday night, in our pajamas, nothing better!  As we pulled ornament after ornament out of the box that read "Alex", little Abby started to ask "where are MY ornaments??".  Eventually we found a few "Abby" ornaments.  Our tree is a collection of homemade treasures, mostly made by Alex, and keepsakes from over the years...places we've traveled, ornaments from when we were younger, etc.  We'd be hard-pressed to pick favorites on the tree!

Haircut

Lots of posing after her blowout