Thanksgiving

Thirty four...
That's the number of people who accepted our invitation for Thanksgiving lunch. Wes was up at 4:00 this morning to get the fire started on the smoker, and it was the best turkey I have ever eaten! I guess the others enjoyed it, too, because there are no left-overs.

Evan has anticipated this day for weeks now, not for food but for the "marathon" football game he had planned in the backyard. The boys played for hours, and when the last guests walked out the door, all three of my boys fell fast asleep.

Many thanks to all of our wonderful friends for spending the day with us! We are looking forward to hosting Thanksgiving lunch in November '09 already!

Cupcakes for Thanksgiving

My mom found this idea in a magazine and sent it to me last week. It's Turkey Cupcakes for Thanksgiving.

The boys were super excited about putting these together. It was perfect timing when another friend posted a recipe for yellow cake on her blog. The boys and I made the cake with her recipe, decorated the cupcakes with chocolate icing, and began the finishing touches. 

However, once the second turkey was complete, the boys ran. They realized the hardwork in adding eyes, beaks, noses, and feet to eighteen turkeys. I was left with the work all the time lamenting that if we had friends with fewer children it would make the entire process much easier. All eighteen are done, minus feet because that was just too much for my patience level to endure. Let's hope they taste good!

Lion Heart

Keagan realized just this weekend that Evan is now six. Evan's sixth birthday was 02 NOV, but for the past three weeks Keagan thought that Evan was still five. Keagan actually believed that he would turn five in August and they would then be the same age. On Saturday, he became quite upset when he overheard me tell someone that Evan was now six. He exclaimed, "I will never catch up with him now." Last week Wes had to try to explain to Keagan that he will always be the little brother. Keagan didn't like the idea of always being little so to appease him Wes began to call him Lion Heart; the premise being that although Keagan is in a tiny body, he has the courage and bravery of a big lion. What a great dad! Keagan loves the name and proudly says that he is little but brave like a lion.

He Said It

Last night Evan and I got into bed to read books. I pulled a book off the book shelf for Evan to read and he didn't want to read it because he had already read it to me several times. I told him that by re-reading books to me he becomes a better reader. I proceeded to explain that by doing this he improves his reading fluency, but before I could finish my sentence he said, "The flu! You want me to read this book and get the flu?"

Keagan is totally into Star Wars; I know nothing about any of it. A week ago I heard Keagan exclaim, "Let's go, Evan. Jennifer Grievous is coming!" I didn't think twice about it, and I chased the boys around the house playing the role of "Jennifer." When Wes got home a couple of days later, I was told my role was that of General Grievous, not Jennifer Grievous.

Celebrating United

Tonight we celebrated another undefeated soccer season with dinner at Fuddruckers with Team United. I have said this many times before, but we truly have the best soccer coach! Alex and his wife Stephanie designed t-shirts for the boys with a team picture and a "champion" logo. The boys were thrilled; I think Evan appreciated that more than the trophy. Spring season registration has begun and you can bet that we have requested the same team and the same coach. I must admit that one aspect of our lives that I will miss the most should we really move in June will be the friendships we have established through soccer.

Architecture and Leave Piles

November is a great month if you are a teacher. With a teacher work day, Veteran's Day, half day schedules, and Thanksgiving holidays, the month provides a lot of down time. Today was a holiday for all four of us, so we took the boys to the National Building Museum. Wes went to an event there a while back, and he was reminded of it after my friend Nikki went with her son last week. It might have been more enjoyable if they hadn't been setting up for a weekend event. Crews were everywhere hanging curtains, setting up spot lights, and cleaning the carpets. We were able to visit the Kids' Zone, though, and we did try the treasure hunt for architectural design. I must admit that I learned a few new vocabulary words; Wes says he learned it all in elementary school. It must be tough being so smart! Anyway, the building is spectacular with the ornate columns! 

After lunch, Evan decided he wanted to jump into piles of leaves. Today was the day because Wes promises that I will come home from work tomorrow and see a yard of green grass instead of a layer of brown leaves. So we piled leaves upon piles of leaves for big jumps and lots of fun!

Autumn in Virginia

Every year I am surprised with the brilliancy of the colors of the leaves. Wes took these pics this week when he had a day off.