goof

This giddy guy with a Santa bubble beard and a joy bug...

one sec fall

turkey day

Citrus turkey delivered again... Keaton and my mom jumped in to help and I'm grateful... Zoe had some nibbles and you can see that she enjoyed the tryptophan. My mom brought her fun M&M taste testing and Aiden won the prize identifying all of them correctly. 

cheering

Cheering on those turkey trotters as the come up the last hill towards the finish line.

old friends

Such a treat for one of my favorite people to visit with his family while they were in town for the holiday... Frank and company are the best kind of company...

turkeys

Zoe got a new pair of granny jammies from G&P. The boys opened the handprint turkey factory so she could add a paw print ;)

piano recital

These guys knocked their piano recital out of the park... Snagged our photo with Ms. Wallin and she has less time than I do before Aiden is taller than her ;)

We came directly from the Barnes and Noble book fair preview for A FYP... which is always a fun peek at what is to come...

luncheon

Made it to both of the kid's turkey luncheons in between shifts at the book fair - my only retail experience - thankfully ;)

Found Keaton's contribution to the cornucopia and Aiden's blue turkey... some sort of character I can't remember...

puppy trim

Cute girl had another visit from her groomer friend... she doesn't particularly like her fluff and cut, but she tolerates it. Just like the grammy jammies that Gran brought her.... tolerates them ;)

meadowlark

Such a nice night to wander the lights at the botanical garden. We were in the first round, and we went straight to the s'mores. It seems that J had his first s'more ever at that fire?! We even ran into Aiden's teacher from last year with his family. It's always a fun tradition!

12th bday

Aiden's birthday bonanza at Dave and Busters was a treat! He has great friends who have great senses humor. The Injustice Arcade game was the big highlight with the collector cards that you use in the game. 

tidbits

A round of hot cocoa after dinner is always fun...

This cuddly girl couldn't be more of a floof!

Making bowls for the Empty Bowls fundraiser... they need hundreds of bowls for the donors to eat their soup and take home with them.  I hadn't thrown on a wheel in many years, but I got it centered right away. 

leaf pile

Somebody loves hopping through the leaf piles ;)

good list

The knitting bug bit hard this fall, and it continues with this iconic Dude Sweater for J... I have sleeves! and about 10 inches on the body rounds complete! It is moving along slowly, but surely.

Keaton wore this store bought sweater (the Aiden hand me down size) for World Kindness Mr. Roger's Cardigan Day at school. 

Keaton trying out the dog drawing in our Chat-n-Chew book, the Year of the Dog. The third graders were so great and gave such mature responses during our lunch.

Keaton cruising on his scooter as he continues to be able to play outside with his triplet friends across the street. The sweatshirt weather in December is such a treat!

I added this pom to my Rhinebeck Farmer's Daughter hat which Aiden thinks looks tasty. ;)

cox farms

We had a day off from school on Nov 4, and the Fall Festival at Cox was still open! I was so glad we caught this fun tradition - and didn't miss our chance at an apple cider donut. This year the Imaginature Trail included a bunch of funny hidden sheep, and we found them all for a photo.

goats

Visiting the goats in always a favorite part!

rags

At the beginning of September, Aiden auditioned for a revival and DC Premiere of an old broadway musical called, R ags at G eorge M ason U niversity. The story revolves around a mother and her son who are Russian immigrants arriving into Ellis Island. Aiden worked so hard in his role as David, the son. It was such a talented group of college kids showcasing the new music in this show. They even had a chance to meet the author of the new book, and overall it was such a great learning experience, acting out a US History lesson.

Aiden would head off straight from the school bus for rehearsal nearly every night from 6pm until 9-10pm. This was way past his normal bedtime, and he seemingly grew up overnight when we allowed him to have a cell phone to keep in touch with him during rehearsals.  He had fun a preview performances at the Arts by George and for other groups. Then it was so fun to finally share the final product. I was so glad that seven of his good supportive friends and their families joined us - we had over 45 people purchase through our group. I am grateful to everyone that came to support all the hard work that went into this show!

bday boy

This guy spent his last few days as an eleven year old rehearsing long hours for the Rags show that opened on Oct 30th. He also snuck in a trip to the lego store. Check out that scanner you hold the box up and it shows you the built set alive on the screen. Also, they had a lego set that looked just like Zoe! Also, enjoyed some early cake to celebrate with the Grandparents in town for the show ;)

spirit day

Aiden's "party" included a few snacks and pumpkin carving. The kids were all supposed to dress in a solar system/space theme. Aiden had a sun and a moon cardboard cutout. 

Keaton's class had some spooky experiments and cupcake decorating. Their parade theme was animals with adaptations - which his teacher joked is any animal ;)

run for rocky

The school fundraiser excitement the day after Halloween... where the pumpkins were already carved and waiting for the Spirit Parade later that afternoon. Party, Run, and Parade... a full day after a busy night of trick or treating.