Cheese glorious cheese - and other things to be thankful for in 2008

If we were to ask Eliza what she's been thankful for in 2008, I think she would say cheese. This little girl loves her cheese - cheddar, mozzarella (even the fresh stuff), and even the cheese slices. I think her favorite of all has got to be freshly grated Parmesan; she can eat spoonfuls of the stuff and made quite a dent in a huge Parmesan wedge from our Christmas visit to Lolo and Lola's house which included a trip to Urzi's Italian market in St. Louis (told you that this was one of our favorite places to go...). Now that I think about it, this girl loves her dairy products - not only cheese, but yogurt, milk, and ice cream. Anyway, you've got to check out the wedges of Parmesan!




With the end of 2008 just around the corner, there are so many things that we can be thankful for but most important:

1. Our health - other than a few minor injuries (ok - mainly me with the broken finger) we've all been very healthy. Molly is learning the basics of gymnastics; Eliza was also in "gymnastics" for toddlers until her listening ears no longer worked - so now we're taking a break. Eric and I are just getting back in the swing after many holidays and our minor injuries.
2. Our families - we've been able to see all of our sisters and brothers and nieces and nephews this year! That doesn't always happen since 3 out of 4 of our siblings live in Texas. It's always great when Molly and Eliza can see all of their aunts, uncles, and cousins. We were able to host a Thanksgiving feast with all of my family and some of Eric's family for a blend of traditional Thanksgiving and Filipino foods. We were able to share an early Christmas with my mom and dad in Fredericktown and then also with Eric's family here in KC including his brother and family from San Antonio. The holidays have been great - full of family, fun, and food!
3. Our friends - we've been able to see a lot of our friends throughout the year and especially during the Mizzou football season. We've also been able to reconnect with long lost school pals through that crazy and addicting social networking site - Facebook. It's been quite fun "seeing" old high school and college pals and keeping up with their lives now that we're (still) growing up.
4. Our happiness - we're just happy people. Probably because Marbles is so entertaining...

Other notable happenings this year include Molly having a wonderful first half of kindergarten. She's grown into quite the 5 year old and has made so many friends at her new school. For Eliza - well - just reliving the world through the eyes and ears of a 2 year old is a joy in itself.

Now we're looking forward to a great 2009 with all new adventures!