Thanksgiving

We had a long Thanksgiving break this year (well, I did). Danny's parents came in Thursday & we, naturally, ate too much! Bob also managed to get about 4 pictures of us-I literally mean 4 pictures before Andrew was off & mowing! With cropping & such, I found one that looks great of Andrew, so he'll be on the Christmas card! Friday was Black Friday w/Jme in Tulsa-just so much fun to spend time with one of my best friends-the shopping is just a bonus! I stopped at the Salvation Army store before I left town & scored several candlesticks & a lamp base that I'm going to 'craft' into mercury glass-have I mentioned how much I love Pinterest? I never would've known about this technique otherwise! Danny put up the outdoor lights on Sunday while Andrew & I decorated the tree. There were a few 'agghh' moments (we were hanging Grandpa Parker's glass ornaments), but Andrew's been really good about not messing w/the tree since then.

I adore Pinterest-but I have no time

So, I'm a groupie. I love Pinterest-the online pinboard. I am able to see so many diverse things & save what I like-with pictures being the key component, I can select a catagory & immediately know if I 'like' or not! And since I make my own boards, no longer do I have thousands of random sites on my favorites tab-everything is organized *blissful sigh*. I've even managed a couple of the crafts w/little pain to myself! I had wanted to make this ornament wreath, but was afraid hanging it outside would just end in shattered glass everywhere....luckily, I'd already done a fall 'letter' for the door, so I just put together one for Christmas & shared the ribbon between the two (which also helps to anchor the ornament wreath-heavier than I expected)

Happy Birthday to me!

A bit self-centered, yes...but birthdays do come just once a year! Danny finally found a fire hydrant (we'd seen one in Eureka Springs, but decided to wait-mistake!) for the entry & on my last trip home, I saw the cabinet tucked in the folks garage. Since Momma & Daddy weren't using it, I asked if we could use it for the house. I love the way they look! Now to find some sort of art for the walls...I also had a special treat on Black Friday-Jme & I continued our tradition of early shopping. Early as in 7am, not the midnight madness experienced by some! It's always a great time to visit & also accomplish some Christmas shopping.

Andrew is two

I cannot believe that my boy is two. It's bittersweet being a parent-I love seeing Andrew face new challenges, but also wish he could just stay my baby. He gives the sweetest kisses now-I'm stocking up now so that I can manage those teenage years where I'll be lucky to get an eye roll;) He did great at his checkup-50% for height and 10% for weight. We worry about him being a little skinny, but the doctor says he looks great (as Andrew is running & climbing all over the exam room)! He's all of 34 inches and 25.5 pounds-our lean, mean, mowing & nekkid vacuuming machine (those pictures must, alas, remain offline;)

Boo!

Andrew did great trick-or-treating this year. We used the same outfit as last year-we weren't sure what Stillwater was doing since the holiday was on Monday & we had only gotten back from NYC Sunday...translation, "momma was tired!" He loved ringing doorbells and even said 'trick-or-treat' & 'thank you' a few times before turning bashful. He made Wilma go to our other neighbors house to ring the doorbell-he loves her!

Did I mention the Lego store? I think we need the dragon going through our house....I love their logo-they used the little Lego men to make it! We also strolled through Chinatown & Little Italy....Katz deli was yummy too! And Kerri...I know it's almost impossible to believe, but we had fried Mozzarella that was *gasp* better than Parkway! Cross my heart! I think what I will miss the most is the food quality & variety-everything was so fresh & flavorfull...and we weren't eating at anywhere terribly fancy-it was just all really great food!

The Big Apple

Well, Danny & I had an opportunity to celebrate our 5th anniversary in a big way-tickets to NYC-thanks to Mary Ellen & Bob! It was definitely NOT Oklahoma;) We didn't see a show, but we did just about everything else-including fireworks to celebrate Lady Liberty's 125th Birthday (of course none of the pics turned out-I was too twitchy!). We also met some of Danny's NY relatives, cousins Gwen & Marlene. They were kind enough to take us on a personal Brooklyn tour & gave us a taste of authentic family cuisine.....I loved the olives, breads & hammentosh (?) but (I'm sure to my Dad's total disbelief) I opted not to try the creamed herring. Gwen did say it was an acquired taste;) I got to cross two other items off my list-seeing the New York Public Library & the American Museum of Natural History. Can you say phenomenal specimen preparation? All in all, NYC was great, but I'm glad to be home.....especially since it started snowing our last day!

Boys of Fall

Jamie & I have been trying to get some pictures of the boys for quite a while now.....We both came in for Iowa Park's Homecoming last weekend & had planned for 'the shoot'. What I can say is that 1) Homecoming wasn't that much different from our highschool days (35-0, Decatur) and 2) Andrew is almost two & doesn't believe in pictures. Jamie managed a few shots of the boys together & I think half of those were blurred because Andrew decided to run off. In addition, I had forgotten about the library having a pond....it was like flies to honey! I think we still got some cute shots of both boys separate & together....maybe in 10 years we can bribe them;) At least the supercute shirts survived & may get another chance at photo glory when the Brown's have pictures with Teresa Berg (if you haven't seen her work, DO!)

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Science Museum...no to the planetarium!

In August, we took a Sunday trip to OKC to visit the OmniPlex. We attempted a planetarium show, but about 2 minutes after the 'if you child needs to leave speech'....we left. Suffice it to say, Andrew wanted to MOVE! He had a blast demonstrating the proper slide technique & we spent a while constructing train tracks before he found the water area. So much for the rubber aprons!! He was a little small to handle the treehouse area, but in a couple years I think he'll want to spend the night (3 stories up).

Summer chores

So Andrew has a love affair with mowing & mopping. He loves the mower, but it wasn't until he saw our neighbor Wilma mowing that he really started copying everyone. I have video of him running up & down the sidewalk, following Wilma. A few days later, he did the same thing while Danny mowed the backyard. It's hysterical & a little intimidating to see how quickly he mimics what adults do! As for the mopping, I can only hope his infatuation with cleaning lasts until he moves out;)