i’m trying to feel less the pain and enjoy the festivity again.
so, last friday AOI and I baked a yellow cake – okay she was sitting on the kitchen floor while i was busy putting the ingredients together. saturday we went to the ghanaian association end of year dinner party, it was a good laugh. AOI fell in love with a little baby and she wouldn’t stop kissing her. it was embarrassingly cute. she made miss my little nephew but most of all i would like to have another baby. i pray Almighty give the I and A-A family more babies in 2013! sunday was church and then went christmas food shopping. i was going to try to be healthy this christmas but i think i’m going to give that resolution up.
plus, maybe i should just have another baby before i work my buttocks off to get back into shape.
anyways… 
i believe what is helping me feel less the pain is watching AOI fascination with the christmas tree lights and all the various ornaments – she helped with the decoration. her eyes light up, then she points and says tree or albero {italian version of the same object} whenever we are in the living room.
we purchased a real pine tree, just like we did last christmas – i like the smell of winter pine wood in our living room.
we set up the tree two weeks ago. we are impressed by the fact that AOI hasn’t destroyed the decoration or pulled the tree down. sometimes she wants to shake the pine leafs off or take an ornament out but between giggles and dodging we manage to stop her in time.
even AOI goes to bed and the house is quiet we turn the lights down and the tree brings a little bit of extra magic in the house
{the christmas painting is one of my own creation, i interpreted the chimney in my inlaws old house}
the other day i came home to see some gifts under the tree. hubby had wrapped his and the gifts from Britain and put under the tree. the following AOI was intrigued by the bows, she pulled two off the gifts but i put them back without worries. 
{accent of christmas around the house}
we are still in the making of christmas traditions and this weekend we watched The Santa Clause and The Snowman introduced by David Bowie {this last video is one of hubby’s childhood christmas traditions. he says he’s been watching this short fiilm since christmas 1982}
questions: how was your weekend? do you prefer a real pine christmas tree or artificial pine tree? why? do you have any christmas tradition?