How's 2008 treatin' ya?

Our New Year's was really okay. Yes, our neighbors were loud...but not any louder than they have been on any other night of the week - there is a bar over there, you know. I know I sound crazy, but after living in Latin America for going on 3 years, we're kind of accustomed to a lot of noise. We take note, not when it is loud outside, but when it is totally silent! (Which it was last night, except for the roosters, of course. Oh, that was nice!) Anyway, Sean and I did stay up - Brooklyn and Madison both slept just fine through the night. At midnight it was raining so that kept the fireworks from getting real crazy. Our neighbors did, however, manage to light their "old man" on fire with plenty of gasoline so we went up to our roof to watch it. They noticed us up there and waved at us and wished us a "feliz año." It was fun to watch them celebrate the new year in their way...Sean and I just gave each other a kiss, mumbled Happy New Year, and went to bed. Ecuadorians know how to really welcome in a new year, though! We could probably learn something from them.

We're getting really excited for Sean's parents and sister to get here. Sean and Brooklyn are going to drive our car up to pick them up at the airport in Quito tomorrow night. Maddie and I can't go this trip since we can't all fit in the car with seat belts. On Saturday, we're all going to a place out in the jungle that is a really fun experience. I think we'll have a great time together. We always have fun when our families come to visit! Blog posts might be kind of sparse over the next few weeks while we enjoy our company...

Some pictures....

The other day, Brooklyn was very bored with no school to go to. So, I introduced my four-year-old daughter to the world of makeup. Big mistake. She looks like a doll, all dressed up in her dress-up clothes, with her hair curled, and lips painted but THAT IS NOT MY LITTLE GIRL! Luckily, her makeover didn't last long. She's only asked me once since then if we could do this again. I think she prefers the natural look on herself too. Heaven help me when this girl is old enough to actually wear the stuff...I'll let her wear lip gloss after she's 15 but none of that other stuff until she's at least 21.
On Christmas Day we also took a short trip to the river just to get out and get some fresh air. Sean got this darling picture of Maddie sitting all by herself on a rock. Too. Cute. Notice the rock in her hand, she was just learning how to throw rocks into the river...you can see, she's not too sure about it. (Probably because Brooklyn kept throwing rocks in the water and splashing her.) Ahhh, the joy of playing in a polluted river in the jungle in your shorts and t-shirt on Christmas day....