word scrambler

This morning Thomas started whipping out these word scrambles for Mike and I to unscramble. This was the first time he's done these and it was totally his idea. Most words were actual words and three letters, but then he started doing longer words and -- to make it even more challenging for us -- made up words and phonetically spelled words. Way to go, Thomas!

ER trip over the holidays

kids decorated their playroom tree today

.

As wonderful as it is to go back to Oregon and visit everyone, it's really nice to return home. It was a great week filled with special people, moments and memories, but Thomas and I were both sick. My congestion eased early in the week but my coughing still lingers.

.

Thomas came down with a similar bug Thanksgiving afternoon but it hit his little body much harder. In a house full of people, he slept in the middle of it all in a living room chair. For the next 24 hours, he was unable to hold down any food or liquid. We had originally planned to return to CA the day after Thanksgiving but he was in no condition to travel. And, as it turns out, he didn't improve all afternoon so later Friday evening, Mike took him to the ER for a multitude of tests and an IV for dehydration. He was released a few hours later and immediately began to improve.

.

We left the next morning (Saturday) for our return drive to California and he traveled just fine. He still has a little cough, but you'd never know he had been as sick as he was just two days ago.

tooth #5

Thomas lost his fifth tooth (first one up top) Thanksgiving evening at Grandma's house! Two evenings earlier there was a little blood along the gumline so we knew it was loose. Thankgiving morning Thomas said to me, "Mommy, I think my tooth is going to come out today." And sure enough, it did! The other front (top) tooth is wiggling now, too. If it falls out in the next few weeks, Thomas will be singing All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth...

Thanksgiving holiday

snow-covered Shasta

.

Our family recently traveled back to Oregon for the Thanksgiving holiday. We drove for the first time since our move to California. There were weather issues to deal with (nonstop rain, snow covered roads, icy conditions...) and the drive was long since we did both trips without stopping (17 hours there, 16.5 hours on the way back), but overall it seemed to work out pretty well. We got to see all of our favorite people, enjoy some Oregon goodness, pick up a few items sales tax-free, run a little Turkey Trot at the zoo and spend a full week with family. It was a very enjoyable trip for all of us!

.

holiday dinner with the W family (cousins)

reindeer hand ornaments

I don't know why this photo is loading rotated like this, but there it is. The kids and I made a bunch of dough ornaments two weeks ago and these were two of the many. Most were cut using holiday ornaments but we also made their handprints to give to grandparents. They loved making these ornaments, painting them, and helping me add the details. It was a very fun project with cute results!

out with the old, in with the new

Thomas has sprouted two new teeth and they are coming in quickly. It seems that every few days this boy looks different.

counting the days

The kids (and us, too!) are getting very excited for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. For the past month, they've been asking us daily "How many more days until we go to Grandma's house?" To help them understand I picked up a calendar for each to have in their rooms. Meredith marks her important dates and the days leading up to Grandma's with star stickers; Thomas uses a pen. They both seem to really enjoy this little activity every morning. Three more days until Grandma's house!

40 days til Christmas!

mine ~ Meredith's ~ Thomas'

.

With the holidays always sneaking up on me, we've started thinking about them a little earlier this year. There's never enough time to do all the things we want to do, but I'm sure we'll find time to do most of them. Last week we started making some ornaments. This was our first attempt at these and we've learned some things along the way, but the kids have had a great time with this project. From rolling out their own dough to painting their finished products, they've really enjoyed it. Thomas is very much into painting his "realistically" while Meredith dabs on paint layer atop paint layer. She handed me each ornament as she finished painting and, more often than not, would say something like, "This one is done. I put glitter paint under the green paint." Sometimes it was purple and pink paint under the black. I love this little girl -- she never fails to make me giggle...

.

Thomas & the missing teeth

A week has gone by without a post -- yikes! We've been busy out enjoying the warm late Fall weather (almost 90* one day last week!), beginning some craft projects for the holidays, playing with friends, going to a birthday party, wrapping up classes and... oh, yeah... losing teeth. Thomas lost tooth #4 last night!

lagoon playdate

Greta & Buster hunt ~ Bela watches egrets
.

A few weeks into the school year I became friendly with another mom who also has a 5yo in Kindergarten and a 3yo in preschool. Our kids are at the same schools, but in different classrooms. And as it turns out, her famly lives very close to us, she's an avid runner, they have a Vizsla... You get the picture. We became fast friends and have enjoyed many playdates, runs, and even a party at their house. This morning we met up at the lagoon after Kindergarten drop-off. Meredith had a great time playing with her pal Ruby, Bela and Greta romped and hunted for birds with their buddy Buster, and she and I had a nice chat on this gorgeous day. This might have been one of the best playdates ever -- we can't wait to do it again!

the final Halloween photo...

Over the course of 30 hours and 3 different Halloween events, Meredith wore 3 costumes. Dora gave way to Snow White who later gave way to Cinderella...

science camp

Thomas loves science and math so when a friend invited him to join the science camp she is offering in her home, I knew it would be a good fit for him. Today was the first camp and it was a success! Camp is a 2 hour block every Monday afternoon where they can talk about electrons, neutrons, static electricity, molecules, energy... basically all the scientific concepts, introduced in an age-appropriate manner. Thomas loved it. He was excited to go, excited to share his experiments with us and he's excited to return again next week!

FUN-ups

M: "FUN"-ups from c on Vimeo.

Meredith always intently watches whatever Thomas is doing and then tries it for herself. The latest thing has been doing a push-up. I was surprised how well she can do them!