I'm Back
11 years ago
It was a busy and fun Thanksgiving. Both kids had the whole week off and with cousins in town it was easy to figure out what to do with our time. The weekend before Thanksgiving we did college football. (See previous post.) On Tuesday we met my parents, my sister & brother's families and our friends, the Khans, at the zoo. Where else do you take 9 kids, ages 5 and under, but to a place where they fit in of course! I only snapped 3 photos the whole time we were there. My kids prefer to run as fast as they can, as far away as the can and I end up yelling and every now and then chasing them. So, photos never happen here.
Oddly enough, this and the awesome playground are their favorite spots in the whole place.
Oh, and the train.
On Wednesday we loaded up at went to spent the rest of the week at the lake.
Here's a little of what happened:
If you act up at Pop's house, (aka - don't listen to your parents or any other adult) you pick a knot in the floor and stick your nose on it until you are allowed to get up. I was cracking up that Drake had to watch someone else do it. The cousins aren't there together too often, so I'm sure it was interesting for him to watch someone not related to him have to do this. It's rare that one person ends up nose down.
All the cousins, minus Jason, but we are ready to subject him to the craziness yet, waiting to open their early Christmas presents. Since we aren't going to see each other at Christmas this year we thought it'd be fun to let them swap at Thanksgiving instead.
I think everyone opened everyone's presents together. Kids are so funny when presents are being opened. It just can't seem to get open fast enough. One can't wait for you to see what they got you and the other can't wait to see what they got. I love it!!
We have a slight obsession with Hello Kitty. These have been worn almost every day since we got them. We LOVE our new rain boots!! Thank you Armstrong family!!!
More Hello Kitty!!!!
Skip ahead to lunch on Thanksgiving. We had the Khans come up and join us and thankfully the weather could not have been more perfect and the kids spent pretty much the whole day outside. (For a couple days leading up to it we thought it was going to rain all day and all the parents were getting nervous.) We were going to split the kids up and put the older boys at the counter and the younger kids at a little table. They were not having it so at the last second we threw a blanket on the kitchen floor and they all huddled in one little corner. I know we are all thankful they get along as well as they do!
Anne Morgan was the only up for a kids table.
Later that afternoon, Burt took the kids out to walk around on the "dry land" and Sophie's BFF Joshua got his boot stuck in the mud when they wandered too close to the water. She went to try to help him pull his boot out and fell back into the mud. Her backside was covered in thick mud. Oddly enough, this was the only way I was able to wash her Aubie shirt. She'd already worn it the day before and slept in it. I think we'd had it on for about 38 hours at this point. But who's counting.
Later that afternoon, my brother decided to hit golf balls out into the water. Not sure what the kids thought he was going to do, but they were not going to miss out on anything. It was so cute!
My brother and his boys play football at home all the time so right before bed time they decided to play a little game. They try really hard to teach my kids how to play football and hockey, but my kids just want to run, scream and tackle someone. Sophie was more of a cheerleader and made sure nobody was squished for too long. Christopher just went crazy.
The next day, Kyle and Caroline went into town to do a little shopping and Pop told the cousins that if they ate all their lunch, meaning fruit and/or veggie, they could play the dessert game he had planned. Hunter finished no problem and the rest debated for a while whether it was going to be worth it. I think Christopher refused to eat anything since there was actually a fruit/veggie on his plate. Typical.
After lunch was over, Pop pulled out the ladder, two bags of doughnuts and some string. You had to catch the doughnut with your mouth and without using your hands. Hunter was up first!
Grammie and I even got a turn. Sophie did too, but had to hold my hands so I couldn't get a photo of her taking a turn.
Hunter taking his second turn.
When Drake saw how much fun it looked, he ran back and cleared his plate. He was so proud when he caught the doughnut. Christopher still said it wasn't worth it. Love that boy!
It was seriously the best day I think the cousins have ever had. I think we might have broken up maybe 1 or 2 tiny fights throughout the entire day. They played so well together! The boys (and Sophie too) dug in the dirt forever, played in the fort, we went on a nature hike and played with toys inside.
Sophie was up to stomping around in her new boots. They were all muddy inside and every time she took them off her once white socks were now orange.
Wrong end, but she said it still worked.
Not sure what she's looking for.
Then it was time to get ready for the bonfire. We tried making it a couple days earlier, but the wood was too wet from all the rain we'd had. The kids worked hard hauling that wood and stacking it up.
We have fire!!!!
And then we had hot dogs...
Followed by smores.
Rounding out the day with a bookstore owned by Drake and Sophie.
Finally it was time to go home, but before we left we had to check out the tank that Uncle Kyle made. They found a little firework to stick in it and we thought it was going to be really cool. It just popped.
Overall, we had a wonderful week with family and friends we consider family. We have so many things to be thankful for and I love that we get a chance once a year to get together and celebrate. Thanksgiving is truly one of my most favorite holidays of the year!
Can't wait for next year!
We had a busy and fun Thanksgiving this year. My brother and his family came down to my parents' house on the Friday night of the weekend before Thanksgiving and stayed until the next weekend. We went up and spent the night first Friday night and Saturday morning everyone split up, loaded up and either went to the Alabama game in Tuscaloosa or the Auburn Homecoming game in Auburn. It was so much fun!!! My brother's family is a "house divided" and so my dad went with my brother and his youngest to Tuscaloosa and my sister-in-law Caroline and their oldest came to Auburn with Grammie and myself and my kids. We met my sister and her family and headed straight to Tiger Walk. I had never been before and it was so fun! If you aren't familiar with it, that's when they block off part of the road and fans line up on either side giving the football players and coaches high fives as they walk into the stadium. Christopher was being shy and wouldn't do it. I thought Sophie was going to climb over the blockade and start walking with them. She ate it up!!! She had no idea who they were, but wanted a piece of it.
Sophie and Hunter killing time and taking in the view.
See what I mean? The girl wanted to give EVERYONE a high five.
Don't know who this is, but she didn't care.
Christopher and Hunter watching some bigger kids throw the football around in a parking lot.
Then a game of chase broke out.
We headed over to the new basketball arena and found a few of the band members playing. Sophie and Anne Morgan loved watching the girls that dance. There are like 3-4 different groups and we didn't know who they all were, but they girls loved it.
Stopping to play with baby Jason for a little while. I love watching Christopher with little babies. It's so sweet!!
Taking every single bit of the day in...
She wasn't walking with these people, but I thought it was cute how she wanted to be in the middle of everything. They have a little pep rally in the middle of the intersection and we headed down to watch it too.
Christopher still playing with Jason. I think these two will be good buddies one day.
Sophie: "Mommy, I see Aubie!! Go over there!"
Me: "I can't, he in the middle of a pep rally.
Sophie: "But I really want to go see him!"
Sophie: "But I really want to go see him!"
Me: "He is busy, honey, I can't."
Sophie: "He's right there. Go over there!"
Me: sigh.....
We found the perfect place to sit at the game too. The back row so the kids could "walk around" behind us if needed. We did lots of that too in search of food and bathroom breaks.
That's my little monkey! She will climb up anything and everything. Most of the time leaving her big brother in awe and wondering how in the world she got up there.
We had a great time in Auburn and can't wait to go back for basketball games and gymnastics too. I think I've got both kids convinced to go there for college. Well, at least Sophie. She wants to go now. Christopher will probably never leave home. : ) I'll post the rest of Thanksgiving sometime. Hopefully before new years!
Christopher's school honors veteran's every year with a little ceremony and then the kids all break off and do different things. Christopher's class did crafts and then played games. He was so proud to have Brandon's dad, Papa John come and get a chance to honor him at the ceremony. Here are photos:
Each class got up and quoted something about Veteran's Day. It was adorable!
Making a red, white and blue visor.
Papa John and Christopher
Working on a star necklace.
Sophie working on hers.
Time for relay races!
Don't drop the egg!!
Both classes wearing the silly hats they grabbed. Christopher hated his hat.
This past Friday the kindergarten class had a Thanksgiving Feast and the parents and siblings were invited to join them. Here are the photos from that:
Sophie and Joshua's class had a feast the day before and they made Indian hats. She wanted to wear it to Christopher's feast too. Along with her "high heels." She had on a skinny strap sundress as well, but I finally convinced her to change into something with sleeves and a winter coat. It was very windy and about 50 degrees out.
Silly kids!!
She is such a turkey!!
The Four Musketeers. They are a hilarious bunch! Oh, and I have to add that the other kindergarten teacher had to get onto Sophie for being too loud during the feast. Awesome.
My friend Melissa uploaded photos of their trip to the pumpkin patch, which was rained out and so they went back a second time and we tagged along. I didn't take a single photo when we were there so thankfully she did! The kids were all over the place and so pulling out the camera never happened. Sorry for the last two cheater posts, but it's all I got right now! Click HERE to see them. : )
Melissa just posted several photos from Halloween and thought you'd like to see them too since the kids are in them. We have LOVED getting to spend so much time with the Khans this year! Click HERE to see the page.
Can you believe that I'm actually get a post up on time? I know, me either!! Well, I thought I would drop everything and put this up before it was Thanksgiving and I was farther behind. We had a great Halloween. I usually stress about it b/c I hate spending money on things that are worn once. And if we are friends on FB you know how I was freaking out about Sophie's Rapunzel costume. Well, after 3 separate repairs thanks to Grammie, (note: multiple things needed to be repaired each time) the costume made it to the big day. I actually bought a back up one when it was on sale just because I wasn't sure the first one would make it and since she wants to wear it all the time anyway I figured it wouldn't hurt to have two. Christopher's costume was so cheap, price and quality, I didn't care. Now, onto the events. Yes, events. We usually just have 1 time out for candy, but this year we had several options of places to go so I figured why not? First up, our friends' church. They had their trunk or treat in place of their Wednesday night events. It was perfect! Small and easy to keep up with the kids. Plus everyone brings a crockpot filled with chili, so the food was amazing and the kids had a blast!
Superman and Rapunzel
Waiting to eat supper with the Khans.
Waiting for their turn on the hayride.
Still waiting...
"What's that?"
"I think it's called a 'Burt'."
"Hey! I know what that's called, um, it's called a butt."
(Couldn't resist the Nemo reference. Sorry if I butchered it, but I have a bossy 3 year old sitting next to me.)
They had fun! And Nicholas is shoving candy in his mouth. Hey! He didn't come home with me, so I didn't care!
Sophie and Joshua.
These two are a mess when they get together. They will full on tackle each other during the big brother's soccer games. Like, get a running start on opposite sides, go full steam ahead, stick out an arm, knock the other in the neck and tackle each other to the ground. So far nobody has needed a hospital. I have a feeling it's just a matter of time.
Sophie's new friend she has made a school. She loves her. I didn't even know they were friends until last week when I came to pick up Sophie and this sweet and precious little girl came running up to give Sophie a hug before we left. Melted my heart. Sophie towers over her. The next day they had a Fairytale Ball at school and they got to wear their costumes. They were both dressed as Rapunzel and were over the moon excited! It was adorable!
Friday night we had the big kids Sonshine Soccer Celebration. They had a ventriloquist and the kids were laughing their heads off! I don't think they understood half the stuff he said, but it was great!
Then they got their soccer trophies. The soccer ball spins around and they thought this was awesome.
"Will you smile so I can take your picture?"
"Really??"
Our attempt at a photo together. You can tell he prefers his friends to his mom already.
Saturday morning we had our last soccer game. It was freezing!!! We had a great season and I was so proud of Christopher. He loved playing so much and we can already tell he wants to play defense, even though he has no idea that's what he's trying to do. When we were in the car headed home he said, "I didn't know that was my last game. That makes me sad." I told him that he could play again in the spring if he wanted and that cheered him up. Makes his daddy proud too!
Sunday afternoon we headed to our church's trunk or treat. I knew it was going to be ridiculously crowded and so I wanted to get there while it was still daylight and be gone before dark. Brandon's parents met us and walked around with us too, which was fun for the kids. They love that they get to see their grandparents so much this year. We never get to do things like sports games or fun events with grandparents, so this year has been extra special. It's usually quick weekend trips or major holidays with the occasional week at the lake. Needless to say, we are enjoying ourselves.
This sweet lady was trying to get Sophie to say "trick or treat," but she just kept saying "please." It as funny! She just laughed and finally gave her some candy.
Playing a little basketball.
This was my favorite stop. As soon as I saw this lovely couple I had to get my kids to pose with them. They are dear, sweet parents of a friend of mine and she was my first grade teacher. I am also good friend with their nieces. Lots of connections. I told the kids, "Come here! You've got to take your picture with them!" and what do you think happened? Sophie BOLTED and Christopher ran right up, put on his best smile and I'm left in shock. They totally switched personalities on me. But I don't care, I'm just glad I got to throw in someone else's grandparents on here!
(Note: You can find their daughter and her adorable family here. Now she does Halloween right!)
We only went down about 2 rows for candy and then they wanted to go to the bouncy house stuff. Fine by me! The less candy the better! After the slide and a turn through the blow up maze/gym/obstacle course thingy and we headed for pizza. I was so proud of my kids, after 2 nights of trunk or treating they barely filled their buckets. Is that wrong? And it's not because they ate it all!
We had a great Halloween and I am ready to move on to the tastiest of holidays, Thanksgiving!
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