173 Pictures
That is how many I have taken since Christmas Eve! Man, 173 pictures and I can only post a couple here on my site. Right now I am posting just a couple little shots and I have a full photo gallery of Novali's Christmas in Michigan! Check it out: Novali's Updates.

Christmas Eve was done traditional Bolivian style in an American twist A La Centellas. For you long time readers you might remember my midnight dinner last year while in Bolivia. We were not able to hold out that long, but we had dinner at about 11pm. My American grandparents were over, Tamara, Raquel and Valerie, and Andres. We were only missing Miguel. It was a full house to say the least. We ate Chuño (my favorite!) Puti and Aji de Pollo with soup and bread, and white wine topped off with some after dinner coffee, desert, and... Present time! Novali and Valerie got way excited as the present exchange arrived (Valerie is actually just always excited). Anyhow some pics...

Our new Christmas Ornament, a Golden Star, in honor of Enrique Centella, my abuelito.

Novali and Valerie warmed up quickly to eachother.

Chuño... my favorite food.

After dinner, it was gift time.

Novali and Tamara enjoying the gifts.

Sleeping by the tree waiting for Santa.

Christmas Day was a pleasant surprise for the little girls. Novali left milk and cookies in front of the fireplace for Santa and she decided to sleep in her new Barbie sleeping bag right in front of the tree. This made it hard for me to sneak in and play Santa... but my dad and I managed to get in there, leave more gifts, and eat the cookies and down the milk. Novali woke up excited and ran around the house telling everyone that Santa ate the cookies. Once everyone was up we opened gifts and Novali got even more stuff... not sure how it will all fit into the car on the way home.

Milk and cookies... gone!

Gift time again.

New gloves and hat... more clothes... more toys... more everything.

Had to work right away on her new coloring books.

Sunday we went to Gladwin to my grandparents house on Pratt Lake. The lake froze and my grandpa cleared a nice spot on the lake and we played. It was great. I pulled Novali around on an intertube, taught her to make snow angels, made a snow man with her grandpa, drank hot coco, and she wiped out once big time... snow all over her face. She got up, I dusted of her face... and while she cried she said, "Daddy I'm Hurt! Dady I'm Hurt!" She was fine.

Playing her letter game.

Ready to play in the snow.

In a pile of snow after being spun around on the tube..

My mom and dad with their grandkids, Novali and Valerie.

The rest of the time in Michigan was spent doing all sorts of new things. She made gingerbreadmen with Grandma, went sledding with Grandpa, watched Tio Andy ice skate and said "WOW!", made snow angels with her papi, took lots of bubble baths, worked on a 1000 piece puzzle, saw A Sharks Tale with Grandma and I, played with PlayDough with grandpa, made a fort in the basement with Tio Andy, and played with all her new toys and her little cousin Valerie. So many funny stories... one was from this morning. She wanted me to get her some chocolate milk. We did not have any (or so I thought), and she got mad at me, and said she was not my friend anymore. Then she walked over, pulled out a dinning room chair, sat down in front of the puzzle, and said, "I am gonna play this by myself... and It's gonna be fun!".

Making animals out of PlayDough.

In her play fort with Tio Andy.

Her favorite Gingerbreadman.

Going down the sledding hill with grandpa.

Making a snow angel.

Posing for her Christmas picture.

Wednesday morning we start the trek home. We will stop off at my house in Albion so I can grab some things I need to take to Chicago, and then off to her mamas house. Then Thursday morning I pick up Miguel at Ohare Airport from his European trip and we head back to Michigan!

New Years plans are still a little in the air, but more then likely it will be low key, and then the rest of the weekend I will be getting ready for a busy couple weeks at work... ah... vacation will be over.