Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving from my little turkeys!!!

I hope that everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Count your blessings, not only today, but every day.

Thanksgiving Feast

On Friday, Chloe's preschool class had their Thanksgiving Feast.

Each child got to pick between being an Indian or a Pilgrim for the feast. Since the school had a pow wow a couple of weeks earlier, and they had already made Indian costumes for each child, we decided that Chloe would be an Indian. The only problem was that I was not informed that she would have another opportunity to wear the costume and threw away her headdress. Before you jump to conclusion, please know that I usually save all of the littles' art projects (worksheets are another story). This just happened to be the one time...And of course, it would also be the one time that we would need to reuse an art project.

Chloe and I worked on a new headdress the night before the feast.

These were a few pictures that I snapped before school that morning.

At lunch, Chloe's preschool class had its Thanksgiving Feast, but not before stopping to take a class picture for all the mommas and daddies (okay, maybe just the mommas;)).

Then, it was time to feast! It's funny how Evan has become an honorary classmate of Chloe's preschool class. He even got his own plate at the feast:)

I really have to say that I am so impressed with Chloe's preschool and teacher. They make learning fun and engaging in a Christian environment. It's so sweet to hear Chloe's prayers at night about school and her classmates. We pray every night for kids that missed school that morning, that God will heal them or that they will have a safe trip, etc. We are so blessed and thankful for Chloe's school!

Wee Warriors: Missions Service Performance

Last Sunday, my littles performed in a special missions service at church with the Wee Warriors Choir.

Each child was asked to wear a costume representing a country from around the world. I found a Pakistani outfit for Chloe and a Chinese outfit for Evan online.

Here were a few pictures of the performance.

 

I was so proud of my littles. They did a great job singing (especially Chloe, who belted out the lyrics) and spreading the message of the importance of missions work and its support.

 

Did I mention that Nana made it out to the performance? Afterwards, we grabbed a bite to eat and I was able to get this picture of Nana with her babies.

 

 

I'll close this post with a line from the song that they sang, " Send me I will go/I will proclaim the truth/That Jesus Christ is Lord" (Send Me by Planetshakers)

Road Trip to Atlanta

I guess to start this blog post, I have to back up about a month or so...For Chloe's birthday at the beginning of October, we decided that her present from us (other than her birthday party) would be a trip to the American Girl store in Atlanta where she could spend her birthday money. I made a reservation at the American Girl Bistro for a birthday lunch and our plans were set. However, closer to her birthday, we realized that due to all the birthday activities (Let's face it. Chloe's birthday ended up being more of a birthday week!) and finances, it would probably be better to postpone our trip to the following month. I cancelled and rescheduled reservations and we were set for our trip on the first Saturday in November. However, a week before our trip, Chloe got a birthday invitation from her preschool bestie and decided that she'd rather go the party and postpone her trip yet a second time. Since I had a work trip the following week and needed a few of my weekend hours to work on it, I decided that it was probably for the best. Luckily, I was able to make a reservation for the following Sunday, which also happened to be same weekend of my wedding anniversary

So here we were, over a month later, and we were finally going on our trip to Atlanta. As a bonus, Chris surprised me by booking a suite, so we could stay overnight.

We got up bright and early on our Sunday morning. I completely forgot about the one hour time difference when making reservations, so we were in a rush that morning since we would be losing an hour. However, it was all worth it! Chloe was completely enamored with the store and restaurant. Before seating us, the host asked if we were celebrating a birthday (we had a regular lunch reservation by this time) and we let him know that the lunch was actually a birthday present.

The littles were so excited that we would be able to eat lunch with their toys. Our plan was to let Chloe pick out a doll before lunch, so she could eat lunch with us, but we arrived at the store just in time for our reservation, so we borrowed a loaner doll. Evan brought his stuffed monkey to join us for lunch.

My sweet girl and me

 And our waitress surprised Chloe with a sweet birthday treat.

It was such a joy to eat at the Bistro. Chloe was so dainty and wanted everything "just so" as she ate. Evan was so funny with his monkey. After we were seated and the waitress left our table, he asked, " Where's monkey's menu?" He's a nut!

Afterwards, Chloe and I went shopping.

We ended up getting two dolls, one with characteristics similar to Chloe's, and Saige, the American Girl doll of the year. I asked Chloe what she was going to name her first doll, and her response was, "Sassy," which was the one word that I used to describe Chloe's personality during lunch as we read conversation cards that were left on our table. Daddy didn't really like the name, but Evan came up with the name Marin and it stuck. We didn't end up getting any pictures of Marin on this day, but I'm sure that we'll have plenty in the years to come:)

Although Evan did enjoy eating lunch at the Bistro, we didn't want to make the trip all about Chloe. While Chloe and I shopped, Daddy and Evan picked out a few toys at the mall with some of his saved birthday money. He decided (or maybe Daddy decided) to buy legos.

That same day, the North Point Mall was having its Annual Christmas Parade to welcome Santa. By chance, we decided to ride the carousel at the exact moment that Santa was starting the parade and somehow we were drafted into the parade. We made a quick getaway at one of the turns:)

After a quick check-in and rest at our hotel, we headed over to my friend Katie's house for dinner. Katie and I were roommates for two years in college, but it has been over ten years since we've seen each other in person. I'm able to keep up with Katie and her family through Facebook, but it was nice to see her face to face and meet her family. For the most part, the kids got along well. Also, Chloe got her first kiss on the cheek from a boy!!!

I wasn't able to get a good photo of all the kids sitting, but I love all the bright smiles in this one! Oh, and look, Marin made it into this photo.

The following morning after check-out, we ate lunch at the Bone Garden Cantina, a restaurant that was featured on the Travel Channel. It was delicious! I got a barbacoa quesadilla, which was yummy to my tummy. However, I had a bite of Chris's enchilada, and that had to be the best thing on the menu! By far, the best enchilada that I have ever tried. And that is saying a lot considering that my Auntie Tina is one of the best cooks out there, and can whip up some of the best Mexican dishes like nobody's business!

We decided to make one more stop before leaving Atlanta at the Centennial Olympic Park that was built in honor of the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games that were held there.

We stopped at the Fountain of Rings and played for a while. I managed to stay dry, but the littles didn't fare so well.

These people were filming a promo for a show or a commercial. I didn't recognize any of the ladies, but maybe you do.

We walked around the park for a little while longer and took in some of the sights and sounds.

Our trip the ATL was a good weekend getaway. I'm so glad that I got to enjoy this time with my family and catch up with an old friend. I feel so blessed.

Frontier Days at Fort Toulouse

Last Saturday, we stepped back in time to the frontier days of Alabama {1711 to 1820} at the Frontier Days program being held at the Fort Toulouse-Jackson National Historic Park. We learned a little about life in the those days from living history exhibits, reenactments, and demonstrations. I can't say that we learned "a lot" because the littles were much more interested in exploring rather than learning...oh yeah, and buying trinkets. Ha!
 
Here were a few of the living history exhibits that we saw.
 
This man educated us on the different weaponry that the Native Americans used during the frontier days.
 

 

There were many exhibits like this one that showcased frontier life.

 

 

They also had living history that appealed to children. The littles pulled the wooden spoon to make the puppet dance while this woman played the "flute." 

 

 

There was an ocean in this box. 

 

 
We also caught the part of a battle reenactment.
 

 
My friend, Heather, and her kids joined us on our excursion. The littles always enjoy playing with Gabe and Carly and I enjoy catching up with my childhood friend. 


Carly, Chloe, and Evan

We caught a magic and fire show.

 

 

 

Although, I would have to say that the highlight for all the kids was probably playing on the Indian Mounds

 

 

We had a great time. It was nice to get away from our norm and the history major inside me really enjoyed getting a little bit of a history lesson. I have plans to return with the littles one day (hopefully soon) and to explore the park. Also, it was so nice to catch up with our friends. It's good for my heart:)