Happy Thanksgiving!!!

I hope everyone enjoyed the Thanksgiving week, we sure did!  It was very nice to have all 5 of us off of work/school and home on Wednesday-Sunday!  We were up early on Thursday and headed out for lunch in Burr Ridge with 3 handsome boys.

 We then went to Chicago Ridge for another meal with the cousins!

 Needless the say, the food and lack of nap hit Isaac like a ton of bricks!

 But we rallied, got home, and put on some matching jammies to usher in the holiday season!

 After fun ladies/dudes separate lunches on Friday, I headed out early on Saturday to cheer on Philie in her half marathon.  I had arranged for some FaceTime cheerleaders to get her geared up.  Kathleen greeted her before we headed out for the race.

 We arrived to cold conditions and some pre race nerves.

 Did I mention, it was COLD!

 Another FaceTime session, this time with Jenny who showed us where Washington crossed the Delaware River from her warm and cozy car.

 One last hug before lining up!

 "Why did I sign up for this? GAH!"

 Elizabeth FaceTimed in at mile #5 to see our racer and some other fun cheerleaders...

 Kelly and Ginger came out to rally around mile 4 and 5!

Erin gets the award for "best worst cheerleader" as she actually ran 8 miles with her!

 She did it!  I am so incredibly proud to know this amazing lady!

 Maybe these 2 will convince me to do a 5k, MAYBE!

 Mike went to visit his dad one night, so we opted for Taco Bell dinner!  Sam LOVES him some tacos and nachos!

 Noah's newest obsession is perler beads.  He really has the combination of skills with math and with visual arts to be able to come up with some cool stuff!  He did it for 3 days straight!

 My favorite time of year!!!  Isaac gets his first crack at topping the tree!

 Sam found his "baby's first christmas" ornament!

 Noah did a great job helping out Isaac!

 "Dad, this is really you?!"

 And out comes the Little People nativity scene!  Holiday time is here!

Karate and Snow fun!

The boys have now stuck to karate (with a break this summer) for a year now.  We decided to sign them up for a tournament recently and we were not disappointed.  They both showed tremendous focus and were able to remember their skills on the big stage so to speak.  Mike was out of town on a previously scheduled visit to Ames to visit some friends.  My parents and Josh and Kjersten filed into the packed gym with me and the three rugrats.  Sam was up first in a group of green belt 5 year old.

Sam did a great job waiting for his turn and stepping up when it was his turn.

The kids got scores (out of 10) based on their skills in a sequence several skills.

Sam came in 2nd place in his group, for which he was awarded a bigger trophy than the average size one that everyone received.

 After patiently waiting through his brother's group, Noah was then up with a group of 7 year old green belts.

He was the first of his group, you could tell he was nervous but very focused!

His scores were great!  But what we are more proud of, is that his scores should have warranted him 5th place.  But, the judges also look at respectfulness of other competitors and respectfulness of the judges.  Noah had high marks for sitting during a long group and good eye contact and bowing with the judges.  So...

 he was actually awarded 1st place!  He was so proud and was thrilled to see his GIANT trophy!

 Obviously their performances warranted ice cream later that day!  So very proud of these great kids!

 Back to our normal schedule, Bamma came up with a really neat fall craft this last week!

 Sam had his Thanksgiving feast.  This year, I set myself like 8 reminders.  Poor middle kid, I forgot it last year so I was determined to be there this year.  And boy, was I glad I made it!  It was adorable!

 My cute turkey!

 The Chicagoland area got pummeled this weekend with snow.  The boy, of course, were THRILLED to wake up to actual snow on the ground on Saturday!

 Family snowball fight!

 Deven and Makenna came and joined in the fun too!

 After all that fun, a cozy night with Ellie was warranted.  Ellie's face makes me laugh, she looks like she might be a hostage!

I know what I'm thankful for, great family, great friends, and great times with my 3 boys!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!

Halloween Wrap up!

Our Halloween was a lot of fun!  Before I dive into the festivities, the boys have also been doing karate this fall.  They are now double green belts and are heading to a tournament next week, very exciting stuff!

 Noah's 2nd grade pic came in, pretty nice!

 So, yes Halloween!  It was on a Saturday this year, so most of the school parties were on Friday.  Sam had a last minute change from being green lantern to being a vampire.  We had plenty of props and costumes for both, so all was well!

 Isaac had two options: Mr. Incredible or Superman.  He opted for Superman and was very happy flying around the house while his brothers were at school.

 Sam's class all dressed up!

 They sang a few songs for the crowd (including me, Isaac, Bamma, and Bampa).  His BFF Ava S is behind him in the blue dress.

 Costumed lunch at Jimmy John's?  Don't mind if I do!

 I was fortunate enough to be picked to come to Noah's party (they only allow 4 parents to attend), he was dashing in his scientist get up!

 His buddy Andrew was hilarious as a sumo wrestler!

 Our neighbor Makenna with her Kindergarten class as Supergirl!

 Parading through school!

 We did some cookie decorating and eating.

 And the obligatory mummy wrap game.  Noah had trouble wrapping his friend Xavier.

 But Xavier did a bang up job wrapping him!

 On Saturday, the boys prepped for a party at karate.  Sam changed his costume choice again to become Iron Man/Spider Man.

 Noah stuck with his scientist outfit.

 After karate, cousin Xavier came over for a bit!

 This time, Sam opted for Batman!

 Xavier was NOT a fan of his dragon costume!

 Really, not a fan, really really!

 Not sure that Ellie is ever a fan of dress up, but she goes with it.

 Trick or treating was cold and rainy, but we made it to at least 5-6 houses with all the kids.  Isaac and I got out of the weather and the big kids pressed on.

 An evening fueled by sugar requires glow sticks, right?

 So, we survived the crazy weekend and time change and we're ready for whatever November brings!  Oh, and Isaac says he's ready for Star Wars, with his new hat!