Lights in the Heights

Last Saturday we had the best neighborhood Christmas festival in Houston. It is called Lights in the Heights and it is in our own Neighborhood!. By now the festival is pretty famous in all of Houston. It was the 22nd time it was organized and it is NOT sponsored by the city but entirely by the neighborhood. Our neighborhood is one of the oldest and most historic in Houston and apparently one of the earliest in the US to be linked together via a community email list.

Lights in the Heights is effectively a street festival with extensive christmas lighting (Kees, I think you would volunteer for the Jury of the best 'lit house'!) and there are drinks, live music and carriage rides or a small parade. Musicians perform on porches and in front yards or on the festival stage. So of course we had to go!

Ricky was only mildly impressed and spend most of the event asleep in his stroller. Mind you, as usual he never complained and just closed his eyes when he was done checking out the lights and listening to 6 year olds arguing who should be wearing the group banner in the parade -;)

Xmas Party & the Aquarium

Despite the restructuring and reorganisation the company Christmas party for all expats went ahead as usual this year. A lunch was organised at the Aquarium downtown which is some sort of Restaurant-Aquarium-Entertainment park. There is a little outdoor train driving through or underneath a Shark tank, there is a HUGE (even by Texas standards) Aquarium in the middle of the Restaurant, there is carrousel (with Seahorses, Seals, Dolphins & Crocodiles) and a Ferris Wheel (reuzenrad), a stage with performances in the holiday season, loads of small fish tanks with fish and there are white tigers.

Especially for us Santa put on his diving gear and entered one of the many fish tanks.

It was pretty cold and grey that day and with Rick still not quite being over his cold we dressed him in every piece of winter gear he owns. Jannes ran out of the picture to go see more fishies!

Sick

Rick was ill for the first time this Thursday. He has a nasty cough, a runny nose and he had a little fever (101.4F). We where not too worried but he was not allowed to go to day care and stayed home with dad.

You can see he is a bit stuffed up, but he was a real hero and he was not whining and still managed to laugh sometimes and would spit out his pacifier (Speen) before coughing and then try to put it back in after!

In order to be able to breath he had to keep his mouth open at times which did not make for the most intelligent look whilst watching TV. Mind you I know a few guys who look like that while watching telly and they don't have a cold.

Rick did not really loose his appetite but did not display his normal enthusiasm for food.....or maybe he just does not like carrots very much.

Sinterklaas

Sinterklaas fortunately also this year managed to find us in Houston. We celebrated together with friends and their kids. Lots of excitement, lovely rhymes & presents for all! Sint even send us some additional presents in the mail. Rick loved the wrapping paper almost as much as his new toys. For Jannes, who is 2 and a bit Sint made a real effort. Piet knocked VERY loudly on the door and Sint blew the horn of his steam ship several times to say goodbye when we went outside to pick up the presents (we think it may have been the train -;) but hey, who argues with the imagination of a 2 year old!).

Janko had practised all week at home on the songs so he was teaching Rick and Ana.

Mees showing her new toy off to her mom.

Our little helper Jannes distributed all the presents

And although he really believes in Sint there was also no doubt the lego came from Piet Maartje and hence she had to help put it together - Immediately of course!

Rebecca got a Snuggie (which Janko is wearing here), if you are unfamiliar with the phenomena you better find some movies on you tube to explain the hype!

Rick did not quite get it with the first present

But definitely understood with the 5th and he loved the rhymes.

Dank u Sinterklaasje!

Snow in Houston

On Friday December 4th we had snow in Houston. If you are used to Sakhalin or even the wet snow in the UK and NL it was really nothing to write home about, although for a little while it almost looked real, but Houston went into overdrive.

On TV the event was described a 'Winter Storm '09' and on the forum of our neigborhood kids group tips where exchanged such as leaving your tap running such that your plumping would not freeze (it never went below +1 C), and how to drive with black ice on the roads (Ice? Where?). The day care closed at 11 am and my office send everyone home at noon because the where expecting traffic chaos. In suburbia some people managed to make a 20 cm snow man. That was not feasible by a long shot with the wet stuff we had.

Anyway - It snowed in the evening so it stayed till early the next morning.......how do you mean you don't see it?!?! Do you not see the fine white dusting on the roof?!? Safe to say we did not bother getting our winter gear out. BUT we did have a fun day and finally got more into the holiday mood.

Oma Marijke in Houston

Oma is reading to Rick

and spoiling him with cuddles (here in Galveston)

Visiting the local Oil & Gas Museum on a converted Drilling Rig.

At the George Ranch - Rick being taught the basics every Texan needs to know.

Being super cute - can you see his teeth? Please note the socks as well.

Rick, Oma, the Christmas tree and his new Penguin. Thank you tante Neeltje!

THE Turkey

This year we decided that we had americanized enough to celebrate Thanksgiving on our own as Dutchies. So we invited Rick's Girlfriend and her parents (our friends) and her visiting grand mother to join us and Rick's visiting grand mother Marijke. It all started off with a 12 lbs Turkey

Which after the mandatory Turkey Stress came out of the oven looking AMAZING!

Rick for the occasions showed off his settler Hat his teachers made for him. The teachers apologized for it being somewhat wrinkly as he had fallen asleep in it at Day Care ....

We had a wonderful dinner with the Traditional Turkey, Bean Casserole, Sweet Potato Mash, Spinach Thanksgiving style and Pecan Pie for desert. Mjumm!!

Unfortunately for the group pictures Rick only smiles at pictures where everyone else has their eyes closed! In the above picture Mees & her dad Dirk and below both the proud and happy visiting Oma's.

All in all a very Happy Thanksgiving!

PS Both are ovens gave up on us the day after and have not worked since....mmm