Just the 4 of Us

All the elements of a cozy family holiday were in place so that's exactly what we had: a Christmas at home just for the 4 of us. Santa placed the gifts underneath the tree on Christmas eve and Ayla was awake and downstairs by 7:30 the next morning. She was a very good girl all year so she was thrilled to see all the things she had on her list: a piggy bank, drum set, a baby doll, and a musicbox. (We will cherish these days of simple satisfactions for as long as we can.) Even though Izzy did not have any specific requests, she enjoyed a morning of ripping paper without consequence and showing total disregard for the Rules of Sharing. She opened all her gifts but wanted nothing but her sister's stuff. What a chick.
After gifts, we watched A Christmas Story on TV, a first for Mommy. For lunch, we braved the cold and Vegas Christmas crowds to go out for Chinese food. As a favor to Mommy, Daddy made a specialty of his for Christmas dinner and we all stuffed ourselves into the night. Thanks to Ayla's new instruments, we were even treated to a wonderous performance from the house band.

Babes in Park-land

Our munchkins love going to the playground despite the 50-degree weather. Their hands were like blocks of ice and their lips were blue but they were climbin' and jumpin' all around like they didn't each have on 4 layers of clothes. Kids are either really tough or really stupid.

Ayla and Izzy do Disney World

Paul had a gig in Orlando so we decided that the girls should tag along and do Disney. Ayla was visiting her birthplace and our little native New Yorker, Izzy, was seeing Orlando for the first time. Uncle Jay Jay, cousins Morgan and Chase, and Aunt Alicia came too, making it a Sperrazza extravaganza! They met Mickey, drank in the Disney magic, and spent about a hundred hours in line. However, the pinnacle of the girls' visit was a private meet n' greet with Cinderella! Those pictures are not included in this blog. Daddy opted to pay mucho Disney bucks for professional photos and an autograph from Cinderella #23 instead of using his own camera. Daddy's such a sucker for his little princesses.



Aw, the pains of being the youngest kid just hurt so bad. Just a few notches shy of the "you have to be this tall to ride this ride" line, Izzy stands watching from the outside as her sister and cousins enjoy the spinny teacups. Tough break, kid...maybe next year.