Saturday, November 30th Part 5: Painting the Advent Calendar

To finish off our Saturday, Baba came over and her Daddy and Annaliese got started painting on our Advent Calendar.  We had been given this calendar last year but it was unfinished and you had to paint it yourself.  This became a Daddy-Annaliese job with good quality time spent.

Saturday, November 30th Part 4: Helping Daddy with more Lights

As Mommy prepared the Asian dinner, Annaliese and Daddy worked hard on the last of the outside lights...finally finished!!

"Here Daddy"

Saturday, November 30th Part 3: The Asian Store

Annaliese made her first trip to the Asian grocery store with Mommy to buy some ingredients for dinner.  Now I know that Annaliese is only 1/8 Asian but it sure doesn't matter if you look at the complexion of her skin!  Of course no trip to the Asian store is complete without dried mango from the Philippines! Yum, yum!

1st trip to the Asian store

She was so glad to pick out another bag of mango to take home

Saturday, November 30th Part 2: What's your favorite hotdog place???

Next, we headed to our favorite hotdog place, Lulu's!!  We love this locally owned restaurant that has good food and good service!!

Ordering food at the counter of Lulu's

Saturday, November 30th Part 1: Notes to Florida Cousins

We started Saturday off with writing notes to our Florida Cousins: Brooke, Alyssa, and Easton.  Annaliese absolutely adored being with them this summer at Brandon's wedding and talks about them all of the time.  We had been wanting to write them letters and so we finally got around to it.  She can't wait for them to write her back! 

First Time for Christmas Shows

So Friday night, (the 29th) after Thanksgiving I saw that a few Christmas shows were coming on.  I decided to watch with Annaliese bits and pieces of the 2 shows.  We would "conveniently" walk out of the room during parts that I thought either she would ask too many "worry" questions about or would not like.  Overall she enjoyed watching the shows.  Because she has never really watched a movie these little shows are good enough for her.  She enjoyed the elf show much better than the grinch and held her little elf, Tuck, as she watched it.  I asked her if she remember Tuck from last year and she really didn't so I reintroduced him to her and showed where we had written his name in the book we have.  She had come up with the name the year before last when we first got it and so we kept the name the same!

First time watching, How the Grinch Stole Christmas

First time watching, The Elf on the Shelf

"Tuck"

Happy Thanksgiving

We celebrated one busy Thanksgiving as we went from house to house with family.  One of the most fun parts of Annaliese's and my Thanksgiving is getting up to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade!  We talk about the Rockettes, each of the floats, the balloons, and of course wait for Santa!

FIRST STOP: Aunt Cathy's House

Wesley

Happy 4th Thanksgiving, Annaliese

SECOND STOP: Aunt Loretta's House

Nala

THIRD STOP: Gammy and Granddaddy's House

Thanksgiving with Extended Family

On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, (the 27th) we celebrated with some of Eric's extended family.  This is a tradition that we have been attending since Eric and I were dating.  The house we go to is a historic house in Hampton that is full of wonderful artifacts and architecture.  This year Annaliese loved every second of being with...Beth, a relative that came to dinner.  She took to Annaliese as much as Annaliese took to her.  In fact, Annaliese is still talking about Beth! 

Annaliese usually stands at the top of these stairs and sings a song...this year was, "Amazing Grace"

Annaliese spotted this old doll right away

Annaliese and Baba

Annaliese and BETH!!!

Prepping for Thanksgiving

After library, and piano, and a vet appointment on Tuesday, (the 26th) Annaliese and I squeezed in some prepping for Thanksgiving.  She definitely enjoys any cooking/baking that involves "licking the spoon!"

Walter's Football Game

Monday (the 25th), after our popsicles, we headed to NC for a "Redskin" football game for Walter.  We picked up Aunt Cathy and headed south for a freeeeeezing night of football!  Annaliese and Walter were so bundled up all they could do was run around, fall down, and have trouble getting up!  Walter played a great game.  Later Aunt Cathy, Annaliese and I headed to Chick-Fil-A (our first dinner outing together).  We had a great night and looking forward to going back down for a basketball game when the season starts!

Wesley age 1, Annaliese age 3

A Play-Doh Turkey and a Sunshine Celebration

On Monday (the 25th) Annaliese had fun making turkeys out of Play-Doh.  She is very serious with her molding work and will get easily frustrated if things don't stand up or lay perfect the way she wants them to.

You can see "a little frustration" in her face

Our little turkey

 We also had our Sunshine Celebration!  When we graph the weather we keep up with how many sunny days we have.  When we reach the top of the graph we have a Sunshine Celebration.  I used to do this with my first graders and we would go outside during recess and have Popsicle!  This was only the 2nd celebrations we have had and this day was freeeeeezing.  So, we decided to have it inside because you can't very well deny a Popsicle to a 3 year old!  We both don't like our hands being cold so I came up with the "brilliant" idea of using oven mitts.  Her and I just laughed at ourselves all the way through our Popsicles!

We truly are "the best of friends"

Sunny days = Popsicles

More decorating

When I got home from the Drag Show we worked hard putting up the other tree and the outside decorations! We have a white light tree, a colored light tree, a smaller, Eagles/Redskins tree, and her tiny tree.  I definitely have mixed feelings about putting decorations up before Thanksgiving...I definitely don't want to discredit the importance of Thanksgiving but I just LOVE Christmas time and enjoy have the decorations up as long as possible.  My mother simply loved Christmas and so when I decorate and see the decorations I am reminded of just how much she loved this time of year!

Her and Daddy working hard on the next tree

She made decorating so fun this year

Putting the star on top

Loved putting the star on

Granddaddy and Daddy doing the outside decorations