Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! As always, we have so much to be thankful for - I love this holiday because the kids are still young enough to be so sweet and profusely express their thankfulness for their family - verbally and via a million art projects. We've had turkeys, pilgrim hats, little villages, wreaths and lots more decorating our home over the last several weeks. Taylor is participating in art projects at her school and she is proud when you tell her how much you love her project. She will just beam.

We spent Thanksgiving on Whidbey Island with David's family. The big kids had an absolute blast. The weather was about 50 degrees, but no rain, and they played outside for about three days straight with their cousins. They had so much fun and we love that they have such a special Thanksgiving tradition. The actual Thanksgiving dinner is not their favorite, but they have the "thankful" part down well. Taylor is not a fan of new places or lots of people - she gets overwhelmed easily. We try to accommodate this to a degree and make sure she has a quiet place to eat and breaks from the crowd - even though they are family who love her dearly. She warmed up after a day or so and enjoyed herself too.

We came back home on Seattle and you should have seen Taylor's face light up when we came inside our house. She clearly knew this is my home and I'm happy to be back! She giggled and laughed for awhile - she is our little homebody and I'm glad she is so happy here. I took the big kids downtown to pick up my race number (I ran the Seattle half-marathon today), ride the carousel and enjoy the downtown festivities. Lauren was so sweet and said "thank you mommy for the special day." It was good I took the kids to the carousel - it has lots of lights and I noticed a sign that said "lights on the carousel may trigger epileptic seizures" - good to know. Taylor won't make a trip to the carousel this year.

While we were on Whidbey Island, we went on our annual Christmas Tree hunt, which was successful. So, today, after my race, we decorated to our hearts content. The big kids to decorate! Stuff is flying, they are tearing around and while they are creative, it doesn't exactly fit my vision. I remember how much fun I had helping my mom decorate our house when I was a kid, so I try to let them go crazy for awhile (and then re-arrange later). It seems to work for now. They're favorite decoration is the "Elf on the Shelf" that my mom sent them. It is a little elf that moves to a new location every night - it watches their behavior and reports back to Santa. You can't touch the elf or he will lose his magic. The kids are very fascinated by him - Jacob in particular, is mostly curious and a little fearful about the elf's reporting. It is so fun to have young kids during the holidays.

We are so thankful for all of our family and friends - David and I feel so blessed and grateful for all of our gifts.