Fort Real Felipe in Callao, Peru

Today we headed out to Callao, which could be just be another neighborhood of Lima as far out on the water as you can go, but is actually it's own city. It is about an hour away from where we live on the opposite side of the city.  Callao is the port where all imported goods come in and the home of Fort Felipe, an old Spanish Fort dating back to the late 1700's.  

We just wanted to let the kids run around and explore the fort while we tried out our new cameras, but they insisted that we HAD to have a guide.  Long story short, the guide was so nice, but long-winded, and the kids had had it by the time we came back the area where I had wanted to get great photos of the kids. Unfortunately, things don't always turn out as planned, but we had a great time and these photos will just have to do.  Sophia had no interest in standing still and Abe wanted to make funny faces - surprise, I know.

And after our visit to Fort Felipe, we headed to El Mirador for lunch.  I love eating fresh fish right on the ocean. 

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from Our Family to Yours!  We hope that you feel the Spirit of this incredible season and have a very blessed New Year!

Stationery card

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Elementary School Activities

Peyton and Abe also participated in end-of-the-semester fun! They both performed in the elementary program, but the seating was so bad that I could hardly find them.

After scanning the kids over and over for 45 minutes looking for Abe, I finally found him when I took photos of each section and zoomed in row by row.  He played the jingle bells behind a 5th grader with a violin.

Peyton led her class in a dance that they performed while everyone else accompanied them in song.  She was adorable and it was so fun to see her confident in front of such a large crowd. It is too bad that the seating was so terrible because so few parents could really see their children.  To get this blurry photo, I had to stand on a bench and ask another mother to move over just a little for a second.  I normally wouldn't be so bold, but when in Rome Peru, do as the Romans Peruvians do.

The kids participate in swimming as well throughout the year in their gym class. Peyton's class invited mom for the last day to get in the pool.  It was a fun morning and Peyton was thrilled that I actually jumped in with her because the rest of the mothers sat on the bench.

We are all ready for our vacation and have a lot of fun activities planned!  

Sophia's End-of-the-Year Performance

Sophia loves the spotlight and we love to watch her perform.  The preschool puts on a 2.5 hour production each year, which is about 2 hours too long in the heat, but it is sure fun to see the kids sing and dance.  The school rents the costumes and we don't get to see them until showtime.  Their teachers even get them all ready.

These cute girls do just about everything together.

She waved when she spotted that I had moved up front.

and no show would be complete without paparazzi parents...

Sophia

I don't know if it is simply that I love 3-year-olds (I thought that I could have one forever when Abe was 3 too) or that she is the only one in this house who doesn't whine when I want to take a photo, but I can't get enough of this girl.  I just wish that I looked as cute as she does in her baby fat. :)

Happy 6th Birthday!

Yesterday, we celebrated Peyton's 6th Birthday with 19 of her friends from school at our home. 

Chocolate Cake with White Merengue Frosting

Cute Rainbow cupcakes.  I found the idea on pinterest.com.

Fruit Spectrum - Not one of the kids' favorites, but definetely mine. :)

Rainbow Jello and Skittles.

We did three crafts: rainbow friendship bracelets, crepe paper rainbows, and painted our own picture frames.  I took photos of the kids throughout the party after each had their face painted, printed them and added them to the frame as the party gift to take home.

Balloons make everything feel more festive.  The sun was out for a little while, but it was mostly cloudy as you can see. :)

Freya is from Scotland and Elena is Chilean.  Peyton has a truly international class. 

For the record: I can't stand pinata.  The kids are always asking for them and I normally refuse.  This year, I filled it with every last bit of candy leftover from Halloween.  It was loaded and everyone took home way a bag full.

In Peru, you can find anything and everything made of syrofoam and glitter for birthday parties.  This cute clown was $3.50.

He had doves and bunnies incorporated into the show.

I would be lying if I said that fire in my living room didn't make me a little nervous. :)  At the end of the show, the guy in the blue wig, played happy birthday on his trumpet while the kids sang.

The kids were mesmerized. 

All in all, it was a success and worth the effort.  This time of year is always a little stressful for me, but I am happy that Peyton was ableto celebrate her birthday in a special way.

Marine Ball

Happy 236th Birthday to the dedicated men and women of the US Marine Corp.  

Prom 2012 :)

Grace always spices up the night!

Brianna and John

Jim and Cherilyn

Maureen and Amy

Embassy Halloween Fiesta!

and a last-minute costume change for the party a few days later at the school...

(I offered to add a bow to make her a female lion, but she insisted that she ust wanted to be a boy one.)