Mike and I went to Gasworks park the summer before last for the 4th of July. The park is located on the Northern tip of Lake Union and it boasts one of the best views of the Seattle skyline, including the Space Needle. We decided to go back there yesterday to take some pictures and enjoy some fresh...er, city air :) First we stopped by this lovely little pizzaria called Tutta Bella (anyone heard of it?) that had authentic Italian pizza, espresso, and gelato. Okay, I realize most pizza places would like you to believe they are "authentic" Italian but truly, it was these guys' trademark. When my roommate and I went to Italy a few summers ago, this is exactly what we ate. Thin crust, sweet tomato sauce, fresh basil, and of course....GELATO. Oh, it was heavenly, creamy, light and not as sugary. Mike got the lemon which in itself would merit a trip to Wallingford. Louisa enjoyed it too, and we didn't feel as guilty giving it to her because apparently gelato has about half the amount of sugar as ice cream..did you know that? Well. It was quite yummi-licious (that's my baby word for delicious)
(It was well past her naptime so we expected it) Here are some more pictures. (Hopefully I'm not stealing some of my husband's shots...I'll try only posting the ones I took)
We are so white! Winter white skin...that's us :)
...oh well. Who do we have to impress, but ourselves?
...who I don't talk about nearly enough.
...we did! Thanks to family, traditions, delicious food, and togetherness. We are tired though! Chrismas Eve was busy in the morning as we prepared to have guests and finished getting the gifts in order. Mike was able to take the day off and I am so glad he did. Louisa seemed to sense that there was something exciting about to happen. Even though she is still too young to grasp the significance of Christmas, I definitely noticed that she was aware of the fact that we were preparing for something. She was a very good girl as we hustled around cleaning and cooking.
Later in the day, Mike's mom and dad came over along with friends from church and we enjoyed a fasting meal together of 12 dishes. It was a fasting meal in that we did not eat dairy or meat. Even so, it was incredibly delicious so it hardly felt like we were depriving ourselves :) But it was still a meal intended to prepare oneself for the Incarnation. After visiting for a bit we then got Louisa into her Chrismas pj's and headed to mass (well, for our church we call it liturgy) which lasted from 9-12p.m. It was a beautiful, reverent, spiritually fulfilling liturgy and I soaked up every minute. Christ is born! Glorify Him! -we say. That was my first Byzantine Christmas service since becoming Catholic and I hope to enjoy many more Christmas's at St. John's.
Chrismas morning we woke up sleepy, but spiritually refreshed. Louisa, again, is obviously too young to anticipate opening presents, but I will confess that I was excited for her ;) I mean, as parents you always want your children to have fun experiences, and opening gifts is exciting for everyone. We first went downstairs to visit my grandma and grandpa, uncle and cousins. We had coffee and opened a few gifts with them. Louisa got her first piggy bank (super cute - pink with white polka dots) for which great-grandma encouraged her to put to use. After a little while we headed back to our place because we were having Mike's mom and dad over again. There was considerable wrapping paper to be thrown around and Louisa loved all the commotion. She happily played with her new toys while we prepared a delicious breakfast (this time no fasting necessary)
Later that afternoon, the festivities continued for Mike, Louisa, and I when we went over to my aunt (and Lou's god-mother's) house for a gift exchange with my side of the family. There we enjoyed yet another delightful meal. Louisa charmed all the family members and played hard. She started to get a bit worn out, which was to be expected as she had seen lots of activity in the past 24 hours. She finally was able to take a small nap, but by that time the family was beginning to say their goodbyes. We decided to put her in the car and leave ourselves so that we could let her sleep when we got home. Mike and I had a fantastic time all around and we realized how incredibly fortunate we are to have our faith and our families.
These next few days will be restful, I'm sure. Or at least, that's the plan. Louisa is a bundle of energy, so it's really up to her how much rest we'll get. And she has plenty of new toys to play with, so we'll see...
...no no, my blog title has nothing to do with that movie. I was just trying to think of something clever that would go with kissing under the mistletoe. I know. I'm sorry. I'm just not that witty! It's a good thing I married into a clever family. I bet one of them would have come up with something better. ;)
*Merry Christmas everyone, in case I don't get back to this until after December 25th!*
It's really time to start the day! (she wishes we could cut out the getting dressed part!)
Does this baby look excited or what??
Things around here are pretty good in terms of preparedness. I am almost ready for Christmas. The decorations have been up for a while (I'll post pictures soon), shopping is all done, and gifts are about 50% wrapped. I am picking up Christmas cards today (crossing my fingers that they turned out nice, I ordered 75!) and the stockings are hung with care :) Cookies still need to be baked and decorated, but we are waiting for a certain someone to get home from school to do that. And I still have sewing projects to complete. All around though, I'm feeling prepared and level headed for the festivities to ensue. Hopefully you are too!
The St. Andrew novena that we've been saying:
"Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure virgin Mary. At midnight, in Bethlehem, in freezing cold. In that hour, oh my God, hear my prayer and grant my desires, through the merits of our savior Jesus Christ, and of his Blessed Mother. Amen"
We've been eating lots of oatmeal. (Thank goodness for oatmeal! I discovered it will keep her busy for 10-15 minutes because she's learning to really feed herself)
And finally, we've been watching this trailer over, and over, and over. It is SO sweet! Louisa seems to like it as much as I do (it's cute, she gets a concerned look on her face in the beginning part):
With so much violence and turmoil in the world, I am grateful to know peace. Otherwise, I know I'd break down in despair. 
I hope you can take a moment to think of the goodness that exists in our world. It is here, all around us, it just does not often make the news.
Mike and I, holding Mrs. Clause between us :) 