Christmas morning

I kept asking Tacoma what he wanted for Christmas and he just kept saying a sword and a Lapiz (pencil) So when he started opening his presents he was really excited about everything but when he finally opened the pencil he yelled a lapiz my favorite! we all started to laugh at his comment. The funny thing is that he has been carrying his pencil in a little bag ever since. It was also interesting to see how Tacoma opened his presents each time he would open a new one he would put it all in the same box he kept all of his presents really organized. Malia was really good at opening presents this year I think her favorite part was ripping the paper off the gift.

Christmas Eve Party!

In most Latin America countries Christmas Eve is Christmas. We have had a family tradition that we haven't done for a while, but all I asked for Christmas was to make Elsalvadorean tamales. If you have eaten Mexican ones they are not the same. We made sweet and salt tamales. In the sweet ones you put chicken, raisins, plums, potatoes, hardboiled eggs. in the salt ones you put spanish olives, cappers, chicken or beef, potatoes, hardboiled eggs and on both you put recaudo on top which is blended tomatoes, green peppers, and other spices. After you wrap the tamale in banana leafs and tin foil and cook in boiling water. We had fun making them while listening to Merenque, salsa and bachata so fun! Most of my moms family came over and all of my cousins. We ate, talked, the kids did the Nativity, we sang christmas songs and then we danced until midnight. If you notice one of the wise men is really ugly its my brother wearing his Halloween mask of a old man. At midnight we all get a glass ready and yell Feliz Navidad! and give everyone a hug and drink our seven up.

Feliz Navidad! Love the Smiths

Smith Family 2010

We have been very blessed this year. We are still living in Price Utah. The more we have been here the more I have liked it. Paul is enjoying his job at CastleView Physical Therapy. He also acts as the athletic trainer/PT for the Colleges men and women's basketball team. He loves to work with the athletes. He is also still the young mens president which keeps him really busy. I have stayed busy teaching aerobics twice a week which I'm trying to back away from a little now that I am 30 weeks along. I am the Valiant A primary teacher and help with activity days twice a month. Tacoma stays busy by going to his play group on Tuesday and Thursday and his Preschool on Wednesday. We still only speak Spanish to him at home, but once he started preschool he took off with his English. Which is a good thing but also makes me sad that we have worked so hard with his Spanish, and English comes out. So now me and Paul make him ask for things in Spanish or he doesn't get it. We have also made him say it in English than in Spanish which is neat that he knows the difference between the two languages. Tacoma is a very loving little boy he loves to say besito and give me kisses all of the time. He and Malia now play really well with each other. She would rather play with his toys so she usually carries a purse and a car when she plays. Malia has turned into a little fireball she is more demanding these days. She loves it when Tacoma chases her or gives her kisses. She knows some sign language for milk, more, no more, hot, book. She can say bebe, agua, mommy, dadda, wow wow (dog bark), alley(our dog), she recognizes a lot of animals and says their sound roars like a lion, baa baa, moo, hee hee. She is obsessed with books she loves to bring all of her books and and does the sign language for book and expects you to read to her over and over again.

Temple Square and Nativity in Nibley

We all went to Temple square a few days after Elizabeth got home from her mission. I think she froze to death but we still had fun. She is still used to being always hot and sweaty in Panama, I think it is going to take her a while to get used to Logan's freezing temperatures. We also went to a live Nativity in Nibley next to my parents house Tacoma loved the sheep, donkey and goats. My dad thought he was a city boy because he kept trying to feed the goats on the wrong end.