Thanksgiving in Phili

We took advantage of a parent living only a day's drive away. How often does that happen to us? Only this year! My mom and her husband are in Philadelphia for their mission at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania scanning family history documents. We decided to see what Phili has to offer over Thanksgiving weekend. As it turns out, it has lots!

The drive there was longer than we hoped because of holiday traffic (lots of cops!) and tolls that we decided to avoid. (We used to have an easy pass from when we lived in Maryland and it did make everything easier!) Luckily, the stay there was smooth, fun, and exciting!

We stayed at their apartment, in a different room, right down town. We were on the 18th floor! The first day, Thanksgiving, we got to see the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Parade, the longest running parade in the US. We just had a quick jaunt outside from the apartment to get there!

The Philadelphia Temple is being built just outside their apartment and behind where we were standing for the parade!

 Swimming in the pool was a must! We swam and had races until it was time for turkey! We enjoyed all of our favorite fixings, on a smaller scale. Still just as good!

Erik didn't eat any Thanksgiving food:(

Another quick jaunt took us to the Museum of Art, and yes, we ran up the stairs, Rocky style!

Tree at the top of the stairs.

Just thinking...

The next morning we caught a ride with the apartment shuttle to Independence Hall. History in the making! We've been to a lot of church history sites lately, but not many US history sites. It was wonderful to be where our freedoms first started. We sometimes take them for granted. It was a spiritual experience for me. That is until I was majorly rebuked by a security guard for trying to take a short cut to the bathroom for some tissue for Austin's nose. Poor guy (and Jason) was suffering from a cold and needed to blow his nose. They have security guards and rails there for a reason. I was able to demonstrate to our kids how safe we are here (they've been wondering about our safety in the US after what happened in Paris).

Erik loved the shuttle!

Independence Hall

Let freedom ring!

The horses on the street were a big hit.

We walked to the Reading Market to enjoy soft pretzels which are very popular in Phili, a sandwich place Jason said was on some top list, and the local crowds. Then we went to the Mint. The kids sure did like that! No encounters with security there, luckily.

Swimming again and a football game with turkey noodle soup, a must after Thanksgiving, was our wind down time. Then we went to see a Christmas video/light show on a huge wall at the Comcast building.


On Saturday we went to Macy's to see their grand light show and huge Christmas tree. Karissa got her bear re-stuffed at Build-a-Bear and we saw the Charles Dickens Christmas display (display and a half, actually!) It was like Disneyland, except we were walking instead of sitting in a boat, and it was free! We even got to visit with Santa Claus himself!

Erik didn't want to sit with Santa, no surprise there.

This is the only picture that really turned out. It was dark in the Dickens display.

Charlies Dickens

We went to the German market and had some German foods, but it was more crowded and crazy than we liked, so we didn't spend too much time there. It was at Love Park, though.

Having fun downtown.

After another football game we got some Phili cheese steaks at a local place. The only place we drove to so we could get the best! On the way back we saw some lights on boat row.

We enjoyed every minute of it! Being with family, seeing the building of the Philadelphia temple, the big city experience, and the few moments of down time with the kids playing chess (or checkers). We have a lot to be thankful for!

Erik 4

Erik has been "signing" his name as "Erik 3" this past year whenever his name is required for a birthday card or on a project for preschool. He needs to change that to "4" now. It's hard to believe that my baby is 4! Despite his idiosyncrasies, which we all have, I love that boy!

He has been potty trained now for over two months and it was the smoothest potty training session ever! (That's where potty training your kid just before they turn 4, and no sooner, works in your favor, at least in my case.) He loves to "read". Yesterday we went to the library for story time. When we walked into the children's section, the first thing he did was run to where the Fly Guy and Gerald and Piggy books are. He was totally involved in a book before I got over to him.

He also loves to count objects. Any chance he gets he's counting the items in a row. He's getting really good at it too! A couple of weeks ago he helped me make cookies. As I was putting them on the baking sheet, he started to count. He said, "One, two, three" was quiet as he barely moved his finger, away from where the pan was, then said, " eleven!" I did a double take. I didn't think he had actually counted them all, or at least correctly. I had to count them real quick myself to see that there really were 11 there!

He's an interesting boy when it comes to attention. He wants it on his own terms and in small amounts. He didn't want to go up in the front of the primary to be sung to for his birthday. At his preschool Halloween party at our house, he didn't participate, when he normally does with the smaller group of preschool kids. Today at the fire station for our field trip, he was with the others, trying to be first in the ambulance. A fire man tried to pull him out of the group to make space, which was a big mistake. He cowered in between my legs afterwards. He's getting better at going to different friend's houses so I can volunteer, though.

I believe he is secretly a duck. Not only does he have those webbed toes, but he loves to stand in the pouring rain! Whenever he sees it's raining out, he will go outside and stand there. He also loves to go barefoot. He can't stand having hot feet and always complains about his feet being hot if I make him wear his crocs (or shoes, which he rarely wears). Any chance he gets, his shoes are off and he is running! After trick-or-treating, on a very cold and rainy Halloween, Jason said Erik's feet felt hot to his hands.

He loves Wild Kratts, loves to help, loves to run barefoot, play hide-and-seek, and of course "hot chocolate" (warm milk). Not much progress in the eating. He actually cringes and gets upset when he sees the food on my plate which he thinks looks totally disgusting. Maybe we'll figure something out at his well-child exam...

We went sledding for his birthday yesterday because we could! Karissa was at her after school Best Time Party, but she met up with us at McDonald's afterwards. I had made noodles on Sunday, since Erik will eat them once in a while. We sang to him that evening, but since he does like french fries at Mc D's, I figured that would be a good celebration on the actual day. Of course the play area is a hit too. When we came home, he saw Austin's new books from his school library and Erik had become so involved in the new books. I had to remind him it was time to open presents. He was so happy to get his small pile of inexpensive gifts. Don't fell bad for him, though, he has plenty! He loves his new clothes that I bought him last week since he won't wear Austin's long-sleeved striped shirts or jeans. I needed to get him character shirts and sweats. Long-sleeves since he prefers to go without a sweater or coat!

Snow, the day before his birthday.

Always a face for the camera.

Eating cake, what else would it be?

Reading at the library. He is actually wearing a sweater and socks in this picture, a rare occurrence.

Pulling his own sled up the hill. It was a really good time!

Swinging his new sword!

Improvements

When we bought our camper in August, we decided the place to store it would be on the side of our house where there's always just been firewood, weeds, and dirt piles. So, we've been clearing that out and researched the best way to have access to it. It was behind a chain link fence, so we had to go with a gate so we could have easy access to our camper. Being the finance guy he is, Jason waited until the right time to put the first payment on the gate and have them put it in just before the weather starts getting questionable for digging holes in the ground, and then make the final payment. We had cleared all the brush away from the front of the gate in July, even before we bought the camper. That was the project Jason's dad helped us with and I got a bad case of poison ivy.

This was taken 3/2014 of the area from the back, since I forgot to take any before shots.

This was taken in 9/2014 of the front, again, no before shots. 

Here's our house today, 11/2015, with our new gate!

Here's the front, but I haven't taken one of the back yet. We'll finish clearing it in the spring and bring the camper home then. It gets free storage right now somewhere else.

 While the weather does it's winter thing, before we finish clearing the side yard, we started our indoor project. Our basement. It had some mold on the carpet. No floods, just a little moisture covered up for too long. So, we took out the carpet from the main area and are painting epoxy on the floor. (It's water resistant and pretty too.)

Bare bones after clearing everything out.

Ugly!

Austin helped up suck up the water we used in one of the cleaning processes to prepare the floor.

Erik helped scrub.

What a team!

It's not finished yet, but here's a sneak peek!

We will finish the walls within the next month too. Then, Jason can put up my long-awaited shelving unit!!

For a Laugh

I don't have much to blog about, but I do remember a funny experience that happened with Erik in June, if you need a laugh.

It was the last week of school and I had taken him to the library. He was playing with the toys and then started to look at some books. I was reading and letting him have some quiet time of his own so I could enjoy mine. I noticed that he was really engrossed in the same book for a long time. He was so involved, that I took these pictures of him.

You can see a slight smile on his face. He had that same look on his face throughout this whole book he was looking at. I could tell the book amused him. When he was done, I wanted to know what book it was that he so enjoyed, so I looked through it. He had me read it to him.

Now I wish I had taken a picture of the actual book, or the title. It was a book about a town of people who lost their butts! Yes, a children's book about people who woke up one day without their butts. All the butts went on a vacation together. You can kind of see the pictures of the people with nothing where their butt is supposed to be, but unfortunately I didn't get any picture of a page with all the butts. They were just like flesh-colored heart-type shapes, crack and all, with clothes on, except when they went to the beach. they had bathing suits on there. It wasn't crude, just really weird. I think a woman wrote the book too. I took the pictures only because I was so proud at how engrossed he was in this book, not knowing that I should have documented this weird book. When I found out it was about a bunch of butts going around on vacation, I couldn't control my amusement with him! I completely forgot to document the title.

So, if you're looking for a children's book to catch the attention of someone, there's one out there!

Too Much Halloween!

Halloween being on a Saturday this year meant that we had many opportunities to participate in Halloween activities. Not only did they get to wear costumes to school the day before Halloween and enjoy their parties in class, but they got to dress up again to trick or treat the next day. Not to mention the week before when Miller hosted its first annual Haunted Hallways after school on a Thursday. The kids got to dress up and experience the "haunted" hallways of Miller, put on by the teachers, including candy given out and cookies at the end. This was a tradition of the previous Gallimore teachers. They want to successfully embrace the traditions from both schools to make everyone feel at home at Miller.

Two days after Haunted Hallways was the church trunk or treat party with our awesome Scooby costumes. Two days after that was Erik's preschool party, held at my house. Phew! There was a lot of Halloween around here!

This was our attempt to get all the kids in the same picture. 

This is what had to happen in order for Erik to cooperate, in turn helping the others too. 

The boys helped clean up the leaves in the front. 

They love our pull-up bar.

Besides parties at school, the day before Halloween which I did not participate in, I got to go to the parades at both schools. Luckily, the kids didn't get much junk at their school parties, just fun experiences in class.

Karissa and her BFF Olivia at the Gallimore parade.

Austin's class.

Evil Cat.

Grumpy old man again at the Miller parade.  Some of her friends didn't know who she was! Notice that Karissa and Austin made a costume change. It was too cold for short-sleeved Shaggy and Karissa didn't want to be Velma without the rest of the "gang".

Halloween morning was the perfect time for us to try out a cider mill called Franklin's that we've wanted to try for a while. It's sort of near the Detroit Temple. They have been reported to have the best cider around here. With dance and ice hockey in the late morning, we had to go first thing to the cider mill. So, the kids got to have donuts and cider for breakfast! Actually, I really enjoyed being there before the crowds and bees. It was cool, crisp, and quiet in the little town of Franklin. The kids enjoyed being outside and watching the ducks. The donuts were a German recipe. They are made with the cinnamon sugar on the inside instead of being covered on the outside, so it made for cleaner donuts that had a more sweet bread feel to them. They were warm and very good. The cider was excellent! I couldn't say if it was the best, since I didn't have any other to compare it with at the moment.

Franklin's Cider Mill

Trick or treating was different for me this year. Erik didn't ride in the stroller up to each step this time. He walked with the big kids the whole 45 minutes and was happy to carry his big heavy bucket at the end, especially if it meant he would get more candy! I got to stroll on the sidewalk the whole way with my friend and neighbor, Cathy, and talk to all the other parents I came across. The weather was chilly and wet, as usual, but it didn't rain too hard on us, thanks goodness! We finished the night at the church on the corner (our neighbor's church). They invited us to their party where the kids played some games and got more junk, including hot dogs. Erik was home with Jason by then, enjoying his loot and a football game.

Add caption

Trick or treating with friends. Scooby became a bucket-head for the picture. 

I decided the next day that we had had too much Halloween!

Busy, Busy!

Our busy weekend started on Friday with Victoria’s first “real” babysitting job. It was at our house still, but she was in charge of 9 month old Kristen and got paid for the job. I did help a couple of times and went to book club toward the end of it, but it was about a 3 hour job, so she definitely did some good work!

Saturday, it was the usual ice hockey and dance, but I was in Dearborn for a clothing drive at one of our church buildings. Jason worked at it on Friday at the end of his work day. The building is across the street from his office.  Luckily, our friends were able to drive Victoria and Austin so Jason could get some projects done and Karissa was in charge of Erik.

When I returned, we had to get ready to get our family pictures taken. My friend did them two years ago and I loved them, so I wanted her to do them again. Of course it turned out to be a very busy day, but the kids had fun outside where we were shooting the pics. Too bad Erik did not want to cooperate, at all! I worried about him being a goofball, but I didn't think he would just shut her down! He did end up warming up to her (his friend's mom who he knows), but it was a lot of work!

After the photo shoot, Jason snuck in part of the Nebraska game. We ate a quick dinner and got ready for the Ward Trunk or Treat. My kids had planned, back in August, to go as the Scooby-Doo gang. Victoria wanted to be the villain, holding to the tradition she has of being some creepy character. She ended up being an old man. It worked out well. She wanted to hang with her friends the whole activity anyhow, so the rest of the "gang" stuck together. Karissa kept making sure we all did, too!

Our neighbor Bethany, Tessa, and Victoria

If that wasn't enough pressure to look good and act good for pictures, then dress up for the Halloween party, the Primary Program for Sacrament meeting was at church on Sunday. We didn't get to church early enough to make sure we sat on the side where we could see all our kids. In fact, we couldn't see Erik, for his first Primary program, at all! He was totally blocked by the organ. After sitting through the program, though, I realized it was probably a good thing. If we had sat on a different side, he would have been more anxious or worried or whatever it is that gets to him in public situations. Also, if he could see us smiling up at him the whole time, he would not have stayed on the stand, or worse yet, he would have made a scene. I don't know if he sang, but everyone I asked who could see him said he behaved well. When it came time for his to give class to say their parts, he walked up to the podium with them, looked at Jason and I, then dropped to the ground. We didn't see him, but I could see Austin smile and roll his eyes at whatever Erik did on the ground. I guess he got back to his seat all right. Victoria, Karissa, and Austin did well and have always enjoyed using the microphone. They sang the songs beautifully too. 

They got glow sticks for doing well in the program. 

If that wasn't enough, Austin was assigned to give the scripture and prayer in Primary sharing time and Erik the talk. When asked if it would be more difficult for Erik on this day, I really didn't think it would make a difference. I figured if he actually said his line for the program in Sacrament meeting, then he would just think it was microphone day and do the same in Primary. I wrote a quick, nice talk about temples with a picture of our family outside the Indianapolis Temple. He had told me he didn't want to go up and that he wanted Jason to do it for him. Well, that's what happened. He didn't even want to hold the picture. Jason gave a nice talk in Primary! Austin did well with the scripture and prayer. I'm glad he can read so we didn't have to practice a ton. 

To finish off, the missionaries came over for dinner and Jason had a meeting Sunday night to attend. No wonder I was so tired on Monday! 

Soccer

Karissa surprised me this fall and said she wanted to try soccer. She has never really expressed interest in a ball sport, ever, so I was excited to let her try something new. She did the program that Austin and Victoria did last year, DACA. They would have done it again too, but Austin's ice hockey (free) and Victoria's dance class are a little too close to the same time for my comfort, even though we did manage to get Victoria to dance last year, somewhat on time. They are doing the one at their school, which is easier to manage. Since Karissa isn't at Miller Elementary to be there on time after school and I really did love DACA last year, it worked perfectly for her.

Karissa surprised me again by getting into it! They practiced for a half hour, then played a game for a half hour. She put forth effort and stayed with the game. She had a friend on her team and a friend on the opposing team, also making it enjoyable for her. After the end-of-the-season party on Saturday, she said she wanted to do it again in the spring- another surprise!

Team picture day. 

You can see Karissa's yellow shirt heading toward the ball behind purple-shirt guy. 

She was excited to get her trophy!