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thankful: 2014

Gallery posted on by mommyinthemidwest

Here we are – it’s already December 1st and what’s new? Not much, just another 11 months that have flown right by. Our tree is up, the temps are down, and winter is upon us.  This Thanksgiving season came and went in a blur, spanning the second half of November.

A couple weekends ago we went to Tennessee to visit my family.  We decided to go early since my sister and her family would be on vacation the entire week of Thanksgiving. While I would have loved to hop in a suitcase and make another trip to sunny Florida, I figured I should probably stay home instead.

My sister’s best friend and her family recently opened their own Froyoz shop so you better believe that was number 2 on our list of places to visit – right after we ate dinner.

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Saturday (11/15/14) was “Thanksgiving.” It really felt like it all day long.  Lots of yummy food, football, games, and hanging out. I didn’t get the memo about wearing stripes though.IMG_5869 IMG_5885

My mom’s amazingly perfect peanut butter pie. Oh, that meringue. IMG_5897

Of course my kids would be the ones with their mouths full of food in every picture…IMG_5904

Sunday we had to go home after lunch – you’d think we took the boys to the aquarium. They loved the lobster tank at Red Lobster.IMG_5907 IMG_5910 Flash forward 10 or 11 days to the Thanksgiving Day everyone celebrated. My sister-in-law and her husband had to work Friday so we didn’t get together with them. My father-in-law was still recuperating from his knee replacement surgery the week before so we didn’t get together for several days like we normally would.  My in-laws came to our house and I prepared our meal…which was pretty pleasing to my taste buds!  We had crock pot turkey, yeast rolls, broccoli and cauliflower au gratin, hash brown casserole, green bean bundles, peanut butter fudge, toffee chocolate bars, and….IMG_6220 IMG_6221 IMG_6223 IMG_6224

…a nap.IMG_6229 IMG_6234As you can see, I didn’t go out of my way to take loads of pictures.  We actually spent most of Thanksgiving weekend holed up at home, putting up decorations and cleaning. I was sick with a cold so didn’t feel like doing a ton anyway, so it was nice to just have a 4 day weekend to spend at home instead of traveling here and there. It felt great going back to work with all of our laundry and dishes done and house aglow with twinkling lights.  The boys are excited about taking turns with our 2 advent calendars – a traditional felt one and a Lego one they got from their cousin, Spencer.  Just enjoying this time of year and trying to get my shopping done so I can enjoy the days before Christmas this year instead of getting into a complete funk like I did last year.

If you’re still reading all this rambling, thanks, and I hope you had a relaxing Thanksgiving weekend too!

xo,

~C~

 

catch the moment: week forty-seven

Gallery posted on by mommyinthemidwest

I didn’t plan on having a “brothers” theme (or any theme) this week, but as I’m looking through my photos, I see it.   These little boys really are best friends. They want to be together, even when we are at home. They get sick of each other, but it never lasts more than 5 minutes. They fight over a toy at least once a day. Eventually, their arguments will last longer and their words will hurt deeper.  Despite the inevitable conflicts, I hope they’ll always look forward to spending time together, always be best friends, and always remain involved in each other’s lives.

Linking up with Mindi, Sarah, and Stephanie for week 47 of Catch the Moment 365.  Mindi will continue to host the link-up and Facebook support group page in 2015 if anyone else is interested in the challenge.  You don’t have to have a blog; you can share on instagram or facebook if you’d rather.  Come on…

323/365 – Wednesday, November 19th. Late night photo grab on my part – they have had this Melissa & Doug Make-a-Meal Sticker Pad for 2 years and only played with it once. Until this night…then then next three consecutive nights.  They were cooking up all sorts of interesting meals.  It’s a cute (and cheap ~$5) Christmas idea if you’re trying to think of one for your fake food loving, sticker obsessed little one.11-19-14

324/365 – Thursday, November 20th:  This picture is terribly grainy as it was still dark outside and therefore inside as well…but as the boys were eating breakfast, I told them to finish up while I picked out their clothes. I walked out of the room and Theo called out for me. “Hey mom! Make sure you pick out something really cute.”  I laughed and did my best…for Theo, looking fancy means wearing a button up with jeans and tennis shoes instead of a t-shirt. Hey, that’s how we roll.  P.S. Dexter calls “button up” shirts “buttoning shirts.”  And he calls footie pajamas “zipping pajamas.” I call him “cute.” 11-20-14

325/365 – Friday, November 21st: Another super grainy shot – sue me. Just eating some fruit snacks on the counter; nothing out of the ordinary around here.11-21-14

326/365 – Saturday, November 22nd: My cousin Kara came for the day Saturday with her little cousin, J. We had fun going to see Big Hero 6 and then crafting and playing at home.  The boys love both of these gals and having sleepovers at our house. Story time in the library before bed…everyone was able to find something they wanted to read.11-22-14

327/365 – Sunday, November 23rd: Dexter was feeling yucky and puny all day. Complaining that his stomach hurt and just not interested in playing. He’s also had a junky, croupy sounding cough and random fevers that come for an hour and then go away for 24.  We’re fever free for over 24 hours now so hopefully he’s on the mend. I thought it was super sweet that Theo snuggled right up next to him since Dexter didn’t want to leave the couch.11-23-14

328/365 – Monday, November 24th: Typical scene on my way home from work on a very windy, wintery afternoon. 11-24-14

329/365 – Tuesday, November 25th: Bath night! 11-25-14

329 (bath night) is my favorite photo this week, but I really love the closeness between brothers that I see in four of the other photos! Which is your favorite this week, hmm?

xo,

~C~

Catch the Moment: week forty-six

Gallery posted on by mommyinthemidwest

I slid my memory card into the computer as I began working on this post, not quite sure what to expect. I knew I had taken a picture every day, but many of them were rushed and felt uninspired. I’m surprisingly pleased – not necessarily with the quality of the photos, but that they really do capture the little moments of our lives for the past 7 days.  That’s what the project is all about.  As it nears the end, I am getting really excited to compile all 365 photos from 2014 into a little memory book for our family. A millisecond of each day of this year to bring us back to that moment in time, even years from now.

Linking up with Sarah, Mindi, and Stephanie for week 46 of Catch the Moment 365.

316/365 – Wednesday, November 12th: The boys’ cousin, Spencer, sent them a Lego advent calendar.  I tried explaining to them that we couldn’t open any of the little tabs until the first of December but they didn’t want to hear that. We made a deal.  They each got to choose one character and agreed that there would be noooo issues on the days that they found those little windows empty come December….time will tell if they hold up their end of the bargain. 11-12-14

317/365 – Thursday, November 13th: Date night for moms in the Maple Room. This time I got to visit Dexter’s class while Ryan spent time in the Oak Room with Theo.  Dexter truly loves every water job and was proud to show me how to clean the windows with a spray bottle and squeegee.  Several times.  Or several dozen times. Whatever.11-13-14

318/365 – Friday, November 14th: We traveled down to East Tennessee to celebrate an early Thanksgiving with my family.  These three littlest grandchildren sure enjoyed their frozen yogurt (and playing in the kids’ corner!) at our friends’ new Froyoz store. 11-14-14

319/365 – Saturday, November 15th: Thanksgiving, but not really.  My sister and her family are going on vacation the week of Thanksgiving so we headed down a couple weeks early to visit and celebrate.  I celebrated all weekend long by eating no less than 4 slices of this heavenly peanut butter pie with perfectly beautiful, light, fluffy meringue – made with love by my very own mama.  These are the best pies in the world…she could sell them and makes millions. And probably hates it when I request them – that meringue sure is fussy.  Seconds after the picture was taken, we mangled it into an unrecognizable disastrous mess, but it sure was delicious. 11-15-14

320/365 – Sunday, November 16th: I guess we’d never taken the boys to a Red Lobster before. I’m thinking we would have remembered how fascinated they were by the live lobsters in the tank.  After lunch, we ended our short trip to Tennessee and headed back home. 11-16-14

321/365 – Monday, November 17th: I get to work extra early on the days Theo and Dexter don’t go to school to make up for getting in later on the days they do.  This day I was even earlier than usual and it is always eerie, being the only one in the building, hallways still dark. And yes, that’s snow! Our first accumulating (barely, but still an inch or so) snow of the season…about a month earlier than I’d prefer.11-17-14

322/365 – Tuesday, November 18th: Theo wanted me to photograph his latest creation.  He just thinks these things up…what’s neat & interesting (to us) is that his creations are always symmetrical.  11-18-14My favorite photo this week has to be sweet little Penelope’s face on Day 318. What’s yours?

xo,

~C~